𝗪𝗔𝗥𝗡𝗜𝗡𝗚!
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•⊱❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀⊰•
𝗢𝗸𝗮𝘆 𝗴𝘂𝘆𝘀, 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲, 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗟, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗠𝗔𝗝𝗢𝗥 𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 - 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗻 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗹𝘆, 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗹.
𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘂𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝗮 𝗳𝗮𝘃𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗹𝗺 𝗼𝗳 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀, 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗱 '𝗙𝗮𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝘁𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻'.
𝗡𝗼𝘄, 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘆 𝘄𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝘁, 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝗹𝗹 𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗹 𝗮𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗛𝗔𝗩𝗘𝗡'𝗧 𝘄𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗹𝗺, 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘆𝗻𝗼𝗽𝘀𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗪𝗶𝗸𝗶𝗽𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗮 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿, 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗪𝗜𝗟𝗟 𝗯𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆.
𝗣𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲, 𝗱𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗹𝘆, 𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗹𝘀 (𝗹𝗲𝘁'𝘀 𝗯𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻, 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗜 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝗼) - 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗯𝗶𝘁, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗲𝗱.
𝖮𝗇 𝖺 𝗅𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍𝖾𝗋 𝗇𝗈𝗍𝖾: 𝖣𝖺𝗆𝗇, 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖿𝗂𝗋𝗌𝗍 𝖼𝗁𝖺𝗉𝗍𝖾𝗋 𝗈𝖿 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝖻𝗈𝗈𝗄 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗐𝖾'𝗋𝖾 𝖺𝗅𝗋𝖾𝖺𝖽𝗒 𝗌𝗍𝖾𝗉𝗉𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗂𝗇𝗍𝗈 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝗍𝗋𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗋𝗌𝗂𝖺𝗅 𝗐𝖺𝗍𝖾𝗋𝗌 - 𝗍𝖺𝗅𝗄 𝖺𝖻𝗈𝗎𝗍 '𝖾𝖺𝗌𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗂𝗇𝗍𝗈 𝗂𝗍'.
𝖡𝖴𝖳, 𝗂𝖿 𝗒𝗈𝗎'𝗋𝖾 𝗐𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗈 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝖽 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗌𝗍𝗈𝗋𝗒 𝖺𝗇𝗒𝗐𝖺𝗒, 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗇𝗄 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝖲𝖮 𝖬𝖴𝖢𝖧. 𝖸𝗈𝗎 𝗍𝗋𝗎𝗅𝗒 𝗆𝖾𝖺𝗇 𝖤𝖵𝖤𝖱𝖸𝖳𝖧𝖨𝖭𝖦 𝗍𝗈 𝗆𝖾! 𝖲𝗍𝖺𝗒 𝖺𝗆𝖺𝗓𝗂𝗇𝗀, 𝗒𝖾𝖺𝗁?
𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄, 𝐒𝐎𝐔𝐋𝐀
♥𝓢𝓸𝓾𝓵𝓪𝓜𝓪𝔂♥
•⊱❀ ❀ ❀ ❀ ❀⊰•
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𝖲𝖤𝖳 𝖨𝖭 𝖳𝖧𝖤 𝖸𝖤𝖠𝖱:
៚𝟭𝟵𝟳𝟳
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You smiled to yourself as jogged up the staircase that led up to the entrance of the massive music studio building, a sense of excitement in each step that you took.
It was a fairly chilly autumn morning, and the wind was blowing just right - as odd as that might have sounded. The sky was overcast, but not with the sort of darkness that foretold of a rainy afternoon - it was more of a nostalgic sort of overcast, the kind that was perfect for a romantic day in with the person you loved.
But on that day, at that time, the only place you really wanted to be was with your fiance, and whether that was inside or outside, it didn't matter to you - as long as you were with him.
And of course, you didn't only wish to spend time with the man you had been happily engaged to for the past eight months - you also hoped to see the three boys that he worked closely with, the three boys that loved you just as much as your beloved did, only with a more familial sort of inclination.
Several passers by recognized you as you hurried toward the entrance, smiles forming on their faces when they confirmed that it was, indeed, you.
However, the only thing you were focused on was getting out of the cold air, and as soon as you had pushed through the entrance of the building, you were swiftly enveloped by the warmth of the interior, bringing forth a soft smile to your lips.
To your left, was one of the many large promotional posters for the infamous rock band called Queen - except it was also the image of the four boys that you were eager to see that morning.
Indeed, even after five years of having become extremely close with the band, you still found it hard to believe that they were your family - the family that had become solely yours the moment the guitarist had fallen in love with you, which was the very first moment he'd set eyes on you.
Brian was the man that you were promised to; Freddie, Roger, and John were the three brothers that you never knew you'd needed until you'd met them - Queen was the success story that you were especially proud of.
There were no words to have accurately described how much love you bore for the boys, for there wasn't a single language in existence that could have provided the tools to properly quantify your affections - but if a phrase was required to be put forth, 'unconditional love' would have been the closest bet.
And it was a description that worked both ways - because the love that the boys bore for you was simply unfathomable.
To them, you were everything - the sun, the moon, the stars, and everything beautiful in between.
Everything wondrous in between.
For you, there was nothing the boys wouldn't have done. To have said they adored you would have been a major understatement, because they cherished you deeply. It was the kind of love that all people wished for, the kind that only few were granted to have in their clutches - and you were one of those few, just as the boys were too.
Presently, you were on your way to visit the the boys at the studio, for the past several months had been their 'recording' period - which would eventually culminate in the release of yet another groundbreaking album.
Such periods of time were the hardest for all of you, because that was when the boys were the most busy, spending nearly all of their time at the studio. Whenever recording sessions were in full progress, Brian was hardly ever home - so the recent months had been rather lonely in the apartment that the two of you had settled into, not too long after getting engaged.
It was just as difficult for Brian, because he hated being away from you for such prolonged periods of time, but the consistent telephone conversations had helped make up for the touches that the both of you were denied when he was tied down at the studio.
The only comfort that helped everyone was the knowledge that the unpleasant arrangements would only be temporary, and once the album was complete, everything would return to normal - as it always did.
But, it was still a huge delight when you did get to see Brian and the boys - so that was what you were inching closer toward at the present moment.
You'd decided to take a day off from your job at the call center that you'd worked at for the past two years, your sole intention to spend a bit of time with the people that you loved more than anything else - especially the man that was soon to be your husband.
The last time he'd been home was about a week prior, so you hoped that he would be pleasantly surprised to see you, because you sure were brimming with excitement.
Your consciousness was snapped back to the present moment by the resonance of a loud, familiar voice, making you shake yourself out of your subconscious reverie.
"Nobody gives a f*** about your stupid cheese and toast, Deacy!" Roger bellowed, his tone unmistakably playful.
The widest smile formed on your lips when you spotted the boys, having just walked out into the foyer - but they hadn't seen you yet.
"Well I wasn't asking you, dickface, I was asking Fred if he wanted some!" John snapped back at the drummer.
"Well he wouldn't want it either!" Roger shot back in turn.
"Woah - speak for yourself, dipshit," Freddie snorted at the blond musician. "Not wanting Deacy's cheese toast sounds like a you problem,"
By that point, you had begun to walk up to them, a fond grin on your face.
Seeing their animated banter was nothing new, and as loud as they often were when they got into such exchanges, you loved it - you loved them, just as long as it was never a serious disagreement amongst the boys. The last thing you ever hoped to see was a fall-out.
"Thanks Fred," John turned to look at the lead vocalist.
"Ugh, why am I not surprised that you're ganging up on me, like usual," Roger muttered, obviously not meaning any of it.
None of the boys were serious about the words they were exchanging. Despite how annoyed they appeared in that moment, they were only fooling around - in truth, you knew that all of the boys loved John's 'cheese and toast', particularly Roger.
That's what made you giggle, consequently directing their attention to you.
And true to form, their reaction was nothing short of overjoyed.
"PRECIOUS BEAN!" Freddie exclaimed as his eyes lit up, using the familiar nickname that he had adopted for you.
As soon as Freddie yelled, the other two boys noticed you as well, their own eyes lighting up with delight.
"SWEETHEART!" John gasped with wide eyes, the most contagious grin on his face.
"PRINCESS!" Roger joined in before speedily lunging forward to rush over to you. "FIRST DIBS ON A HUG,"
But Roger had only just begun to make his way toward you when Freddie grabbed the drummer by the collar, shoving him behind as he ran ahead.
"The world is a cruel place," Freddie snorted at him before practically racing toward you.
You couldn't help but break into continuous laughter as Freddie pulled you in for an affectionate, warm embrace.
Roger merely stood there, dumbfounded as John struggled to contain his laughter.
"O-Oh...n-nooo," the bassist tried to sound empathetic toward the drummer, but his strong urge to laugh did not go unnoticed. "Not the 'cruel place' c-comment," John brought his hand to cover his mouth as he began to collapse into uncontrollable laughter.
In response, Roger just turned his head to glare at John before moving back to stare at Freddie with an exaggerated sense of agitation - the sort that was not serious.
"Hi darling!" Freddie beamed as he eventually pulled back to look at you, his face showing just how happy he was to see you there. "Agh, it's so good to see you again!" he laughed, gently brushing some of your windblown hair behind your ear.
At that point, you were smiling from ear to ear, your cheeks rosy with contentment.
"It's even better to be able to see you boys again," you replied, your tone genuine and sweet.
Just then, your eyes shifted toward John and Roger, making your smile grow even more vibrant. Without wasting a moment, you opened your arms.
"Group hug?" you raised an eyebrow, knowing that that would bring a smile back to Roger's face - just as much as it would make John grow bright with joy.
Group hugs were something that all of you loved - but only when the group was comprised of you and the boys, because together, you were family; no one else, and nothing else mattered.
Sure enough, Roger and John hurried over to you with unimaginable quickness, swiftly engulfing you in a bone-crushing embrace.
For a whole minute, all that could be heard was your laughter and their proclamations of how deeply they'd missed you - accompanied by Freddie's reminders for them to let you breathe if they didn't want Brian to have a fit.
If there was anything that was worth keeping in mind, it was that Brian tended to be very protective over you - overprotective, at times.
Eventually, John and Roger pulled away so that they could look at you, their eyes still bright with excitement at your unexpected visit.
"Princess, you have no idea as to how much we've missed you," Roger shook his head as he casually shoved his hands into the pockets of his trousers. "What brings you here?"
"You dumbass, Sweetheart just got here, and you're asking her what brings her here," John narrowed his eyes at his blue-eyed bandmate. "Can't you just be happy that she's here?"
Freddie sighed dramatically, patting Roger's back in an antagonizing fashion. "Sorry Rog, you're just not that smart," he snickered.
Instantly, Roger pretended to cry, knowing that it would elicit another giggle from you - for it was always an entertaining sight whenever he 'clowned around' like that.
Everyone knew that Freddie was only kidding, because all four of the boys were incredibly intelligent and gifted - the 'dumbass' insults hardly ever affected them deeply, because they weren't anywhere near incompetent.
"I always knew it! I've been lied to! My whole life, I believed I was smart, but now I realize that I'm no better than the guy with a degree in 'Graphics Design'!" Roger waved his hands, theatrically pretending to dry his tears.
You covered your mouth as your giggles escaped you.
When Freddie heard Roger speak those words, his expression changed into a playfully bitter one as he hit the drummer upside the head.
"Asshole - at least I didn't drop out," Freddie teased.
"I dropped out because I hated it - don't get it twisted," Roger scoffed. "If I wanted to, I'd be a graduate by now,"
"It's not the fact that you dropped out, because it really doesn't matter whether you get a degree or not - it's the fact that you actually believe that you dropped out because you hated it," John piped up, making everyone look at him. "We all know that you dropped out because everyone hated you," he snickered. "College doesn't really matter if it's not conducive to your dreams - but being deluded is a whole other story,"
Freddie burst into howls of laughter as Roger's jaw fell open.
Not many people would have known it, but the only reason the boys were behaving in that manner was to make you laugh - which they were fulfilling beautifully.
"Did you just..." Roger blinked at the bassist. "Did you just spit facts?" he placed his hand on his chest.
"I did more than just spit facts - I gave you the wisdom of life," John replied with a smug yet adorable smile.
By then, your stomach muscles were practically cramped as you giggled helplessly, your eyes slightly teary from all the laughter that had taken over you.
Right at that moment, your auditory senses picked up on a faint sound that you recognized all too well - the breathtaking sound of your husband playing around with the strings of his infamous guitar.
The sound was only subtle because he was situated in another room, but you could always pick up on the sounds of Brian's guitar - whether faint or amplified, the distinct warmth of his instrument was something that seemed to call to your soul.
After becoming aware of the barely distinguishable melody, your laughter slowly died down - fading back into a sweet smile.
The boys' banter had eased off as well, knowing smiles forming on their own faces.
"He's in the acoustics room," Roger stated with a suggestive look. "Alone,"
"Ooh, bet Bri's mind is going to be all cleared up after Sweetheart leaves that room," John wiggled his eyebrows. "Stress where?"
Roger turned to smirk at John, the two of them sharing a devilish look.
"He's going to be playing the shit out of that guitar when they're done," Roger insinuated further. "All that frustration from today? Gone,"
"Wait..." you trailed off, a more serious expression now taking over your features. "What do you mean...frustration from today?"
"Mhm," Freddie hummed as he glared at his two bandmates. "Would you look at that - an engineering master and a dentistry specialist, I wonder what their combined IQ might be; judging from what I can see, zero," he shot sarcastically. "You just had to make Precious Bean worry, didn't you,"
John grimaced when he realized what he had done, but Roger wasn't going down without holding his middle finger up to Freddie's face.
"Fred," you turned to him, making him turn to you in response.
He flashed you a reassuring smile as he moved closer to you. "Don't worry, everything's fine. Bri's just been...a bit...on-edge these past two days, and today he...was a little more frustrated than usual," he placed his gentle hands on your shoulders. "But once he sees you, all will be as it should,"
"Yeah," Roger added with a mischievous grin. "A bit of a release always helps,"
Instantly, John gave Roger a shove, glaring at him with eyes that told him to 'shut up'.
"Ow!" the drummer groaned, touching his shoulder - where John had pushed him. "Don't stand there and act like you didn't write Misfire,"
"Shut up!" John stressed through a clenched jaw, clearly not wanting to contribute to the awkwardness of the situation.
You managed a small laugh as Freddie redirected your attention to him.
"Everything's fine, I promise. If there was anything we knew was wrong, you'd be the first to know," he touched your cheek gently.
After a few more exchanges with the boys, you were encouraged to make your way to see Brian - and even though it was obvious that they were being truthful about not being aware of anything unusual, you didn't feel as though everything was alright.
Quite frankly, you'd been feeling rather odd for the past week, but you'd traced that down to simply missing Brian, because you were far more at ease whenever he was with you.
However, after hearing what the boys had implied about Brian's 'frustration', you had to admit that you were a bit alarmed - not too alarmed, but enough to have made you concerned.
Nevertheless, you wore a tender smile on your face as you paced towards the room that Brian was in, your footsteps seemingly following the melody of his guitar.
Coincidentally, the closer you got, the faster Brian seemed to play - a clear sign that the two of you were connected in more ways than one.
Eventually, the intensity of his building dexterity had finished with your entrance, the conclusion being the echoing sound of the doors being pushed open.
Your smile grew wider when you spotted Brian, who was seated at the piano, ironically - but he wasn't facing the piano keyboard.
Immediately, he looked up, eliciting a sigh from you. It was an inexplicably wonderful feeling to have been able to see him again, for a mere week had felt like forever.
His eyes widened, and the whisper of a delightfully surprised smile tugged at the corners of his lips. That was when you were able to see the lines of a troubled mind on his face, but you hoped that your visit might do him some good - because you didn't make your way there just to see him.
"(Y/N)," he mumbled softly, staring at you with the sort of surprise that made you giggle.
It was as though he wasn't too shocked to see you there, but at the same time, he had not been prepared for it.
You pushed the doors shut before moving to walk over to him, at which point he had already set the guitar down, rising to his feet.
Despite his slightly pensive gaze, he had on the soft smile that was only ever visible when you were there, making your heart skip a beat.
He took a few strides forward, closing the distance once you were near enough.
"This is a nice surprise," he remarked quietly, more or less speaking against your lips as he kissed you, his hands resting on your waist.
There was added warmth to his palms and his fingers, given that he had just finished fiddling with his guitar.
Your eyes sparkled as you smiled, your arms effortlessly wrapping around his neck.
"I was hoping you'd say that," you giggled quietly, making him do the same.
Except he still seemed rigid - tense.
"It's always a delightful gift to see you," he replied, his thumb gently circling over the curve of your waist.
You gazed up at him, taking a moment to analyze his disconcerted features. It saddened you to see him so perturbed, but you intended to ease those troubles in whatever way you could.
"I...saw the boys, out in the foyer," you began with a playful smile. "And...they'd mentioned that you were a little...agitated," you spoke softly, watching as Brian lowered his eyes to the floor, his hands tightening around you in silent confirmation.
A sigh fell past your lips as you bit your lip, unable to fight off your grin.
"And I've been told that a bit of a release helps," you raised your eyebrows, wanting to snicker at how ridiculous it sounded.
However, your playful mood dulled slightly when you saw that Brian seemed even more troubled after you had said those words - which was not like him. On a normal day, it was always he that mischievously pursued you in a bid to 'get laid' as the two of you would often say in jest.
Whenever the two of you spent time together, he would often romance you, and you knew exactly when he wanted something more, upon which you would ask him if it was a 'ploy to get laid' - and his answer was always the same.
"Is it working?"
It was a playful exchange that you always shared, a laughable 'thing' that made your relationship as sweet as it possibly could be.
Yet now he looked as though he was having a difficult time even considering the idea of being intimate with you - which was strange, because it wasn't as though the two of you hadn't gotten up to inappropriate acts outside of the bedroom.
The two of you were engaged and madly in love - of course you were going to be a bit reckless from time to time.
But again - he didn't quite look as madly in love as he usually did.
"I'm...I'm not in the mood, love," he whispered, but it didn't sound very convincing.
He held you against him as though he desperately wanted to have you, but it seemed as if something was holding him back.
Irrespective, you wanted him to feel comfortable, so you weren't upset by his response at all.
"Alright," you laughed, a confused frown on your face at how nervous he appeared. Not feeling up to a bit of 'messing around' wasn't something he needed to be apprehensive about. "That's fine, we can just talk," you reassured him. "I came to see you - we can do whatever you want,"
He still refused to look at you, so you figured that whatever was bothering him must have held quite the weight on his mind.
"Come on," you slid your hands down to his wrists, for his hands were still wrapped around your waist. "Why don't we sit down, and you can tell me-"
You stopped when you attempted to step back but failed - your eyes widening when Brian's hands fell to your hips, tugging you right back against him.
All the more puzzled, you let out an airy laugh as you instinctively placed your hands on his chest.
Brian's thumbs had unintentionally moved past the hem of your shirt, allowing him to touch your skin.
A deep frown formed on your face as you tried to understand what was going on. He still avoided your gaze, and the way he was touching you clearly indicated that he was in the mood, just not quite. His breathing had grown ragged, confirming the aforementioned - yet there was a deeply pensive look on his face.
"Brian," you let out another laugh, this time slightly exasperated. "What's going on?"
"I lied, I...I want you," he mumbled, his eyes remaining downcast.
"Okay..." you trailed off, cocking your head to the side with further confusion. "I'm all yours, you know that by now," you blinked.
At that point, he took in a sharp breath, stepping away from you altogether.
"I need to tell you something," he exhaled shakily, almost as if he was terrified to say whatever it was that he needed to say. "I..." he trailed off, finally bringing his eyes back to yours.
You kept your focus on him, hoping that he would soon make sense of the indecipherable silence he seemed to exude.
"Brian, you're starting to scare me - what is going on?" you coerced as tenderly as you could.
"(Y/N), I love you," he breathed, shaking his head as his eyes turned glossy. There was no mistake about the sincerity of his words, but there was also a foreboding energy to it. "But...four nights ago...I made...I made a mistake,"
You nodded slowly, urging him to continue.
"You...you know Nina...right?" he began.
Again, you nodded, half a smile forming on your lips at the familiarity of the name - Nina worked at the studio as an assistant technician for the studio's equipment, so you were aware of whom she was; you'd even met her several times.
"What, did you have an affair with her?" you laughed, clearly not being serious.
It was only when you realized that Brian's stare remained unmoving that you learnt you had made an unlucky guess - one that was accurate.
Your laughter faded into a blank expression for a split second, just in case he did tell you that you were wrong.
But you weren't.
That's when your features contorted into a look of utter shock, utter devastation. Tears had formed in your eyes as you stared at him in disbelief, a part of you believing that you could no longer recognize him.
"(Y/N)..." he shook his head, his expression pained - not that you cared at that moment. "I'm so sorry - the last thing I ever wanted to do was hurt you,"
He meant those words, but they meant nothing to you - not at that point in time.
You brought your hand up to cover your mouth, forcing yourself not to let your sobs escape you. The last thing you wanted to do was look vulnerable.
It took you a good minute to recover from your silence, upon which your voice was thick with the sobs that had been suppressed.
"Are you...are you in love with her?" you questioned.
"What? No," he responded instantly, shaking his head again. "No it was....this...mistake," he shifted his gaze back to the floor. "The boys had gone out, it was late...she...was upset about her mother being admitted to the hospital and-"
"You just couldn't resist, huh?" you spat tearfully.
"(Y/N)-"
"How can you stand there and tell me that it was a mistake? F****** someone else isn't a mistake, it's a decision - and you made that decision knowing that you were throwing my love right back at my face!" you cried. "You weren't sorry when you were with her!"
He tried to take a step closer to you, but you were so hurt that you struck him, your emotions getting the better of you.
"How could you do that to me?" you shook your head. "No!" you fought when he attempted to grab you in his bid to stop you from walking out. "Let me go!"
His regret was immense and genuine, but what did it mean anymore? 'Cheating' was never a 'mistake' - it was always a choice, and four nights prior, Brian had made his.
He could have regretted it all he wanted, but it didn't change the fact that he had hurt you deeply - too much for words to have described.
There was still a part of you that couldn't believe everything in the present moment was real, because it would have been much more bearable if it had been nothing more than a terrible nightmare.
"(Y/N), please, don't-"
"Just stop!" you finally managed to push him away, diverting your gaze when you saw that his own expression was anguished.
You were only devastated because you loved him, you loved him more than anything - and how did he return that devoted love? He betrayed you in the worst way possible.
At that point, you would have had more respect for him if he had told you the truth straight after it had happened.
Perhaps then you could have believed that there was a 'mistake' somewhere.
"No," he shook his head with a distraught grimace when he saw you struggle to pull of your engagement ring.
The engagement ring that you had cherished so dearly until the present moment.
It hurt like hell because you had trusted him with every bit of your being, with every little vulnerability of your heart - you had trusted him, and at some point, you had strongly believed that he would never have cheated you the way you had just discovered he had.
Once you'd slipped the ring off, you held it in your hand for a moment, staring at it as tears streamed down your face.
It was easy for people to say that perhaps you were overreacting, easy to say that it was a single mistake that should have had the benefit of the doubt when considering 'forgiveness' - but if the roles were reversed, would that same logic apply?
Brian had loved you, so much so, many observers would easily have called it an obsession; he couldn't even stand the thought of you being in the arms of someone else - so why did he get to be able to hold someone that wasn't you, whether intentional or not?
"If I had walked in here today, and told you that four nights ago, I'd decided to sleep with another man," you raised your eyebrows as you continued to stare at the ring. "How would that make you feel?" you brought your tearful eyes back up to his face.
His expression faltered, indicating that he would have felt devastated - and that was exactly how you felt at that moment.
Completely destroyed.
With nothing but sadness written all over your features, you threw the ring at him - symbolizing how his transgression had treated the loyalty of your love.
When he'd made that stupid choice with Nina, he had more or less thrown your devotion back at you in the same way that you had tossed the ring to him - careless and cruel.
"I'm going to find somewhere else to stay for tonight," you sighed shakily, hastily brushing your tears off of your cheeks.
"Please, can we at least talk about this?" Brian pleaded, his voice deep with the knowledge that he had done irreparable damage to your relationship.
"What is there to talk about?" you let out a bitter laugh. "You cheated on me, and I've played the fool without knowing it,"
"(Y/N), it's not like-"
The two of you were interrupted by the sound of the doors being pushed open again, revealing the faces of the boys, who appeared very concerned after they'd heard the yelling.
That was definitely not what they hoped to hear when they teased you and Brian about being 'loud'.
They shuffled into the room, their eyes growing wide when they realized that you were crying.
"Precious Bean?" Freddie began tentatively.
"We heard...yelling from...outside..." Roger trailed off, glancing at you and Brian. "Is everything-"
You'd lowered your head and turned to walk out, because all you wished for was to be alone at that moment.
You loved the boys, you really did, but at that particular moment, you were a mess. All you wanted to do was find a bit of solitude before you were ready to do anything else.
However, the instant you'd turned, Brian lunged forward and grabbed your arm.
"(Y/N), please, you can't go back-"
"I've heard enough from you for tonight," you spat at him, yanking your arm out of his grip before marching out of the room - tears beginning to flow down your cheeks once again.
As you hurried out, you could hear Brian calling out your name desperately, but one of the boys had presumably held him back from pursuing you. Even though the other three knew nothing of the situation, it was all too clear that you did not want to have any further interaction with Brian just yet.
You wrapped your arms around yourself, keeping your head down so that your tear-stained cheeks weren't terribly obvious.
Right before you could get any closer to the main doors of the building, you heard Freddie calling for you, making you spin around with wide eyes.
"Wait!" he ran up to you, having exerted a great deal of effort into catching up to you in time. "Precious Bean, okay, I have no idea what's going on, but Bri says that you can't return to the apartment on your own," he panted.
Inside of yourself, your subconscious rolled her eyes at Brian's notion.
"What?" you stared at Freddie blankly, powerless to modulate your expressions.
"I'm just as clueless as you, beautiful, but Bri was pretty frantic about the fact that you need someone to protect you so...here I am," he grinned. "At your service, my sweet bean, as always," he gave you an exaggerated bow.
There was no way you could have kept a straight face after witnessing that - so even through your tearful eyes, a smile broke through.
Freddie's face lit up when he saw that you had cracked a smile, making him reach out to pull you into an affectionate hold.
"It's heartbreaking to see you cry, so my heart is going to need you to smile a bit more," he kissed your forehead. "Whatever the bastard did to hurt you, you can tell me all about it in the car," he snorted, undoubtedly referring to Brian.
And even though you had desired to be alone only a few seconds earlier, you were now soothed by Freddie's unconditional affection for you - the kind that brought you immense comfort.
So, you managed a small smile as you leaned into him.
"Oh Fred, when I do tell you, you're not going to feel the need to ask me to smile at all - because no one can smile through that," you grimaced.
"Okay Precious Bean - bet,"
·•✰⊱┈┈┈ ·🌸· ┈┈┈⊰✰•·
"That bastard!" Freddie exclaimed angrily for the nth time as the two of you entered the apartment that had once served as a happy little home for you and your fiance.
Now, though, it was anything but.
As it could already have been estimated, you had already made the drive back to your 'home', and on the way, you had relayed the story to Freddie - leaving him baffled. Of course, he was livid at his bandmate, because it wasn't in Brian's nature to have hurt you like that.
Freddie had looked just as shocked as you had when you had first put the pieces together.
"I can't believe he did this!" he huffed, following you into the cozy residential space. "But I can't say I'm surprised about the bitch, Nina," he hissed. "I should have known she was a snake!"
You let out a halfhearted laugh as you focused on getting your things organized, just so that you could leave as soon as possible. You'd barely been inside of the apartment for two minutes, and the painful realization was already being amplified.
The man you loved dearly had betrayed you.
All the nights you'd spent making your new apartment a home had meant nothing now, because only one of you had taken the word 'forever' seriously.
Many a time were the nights you'd spent working late at the call center, with your male colleagues, and not once had you ever even thought about straying - even when they were obviously interested in you.
If you could have maintained your 'tunnel vision', of sorts, there was no reason why Brian couldn't have done the same.
It still seemed negatively surreal that Brian could have made the conscious decision to betray you like that - no one could believe it.
"It's alright, Fred, they did what they wanted to do, and now I'm doing what I need to do - get out of here," you bit your lip as you continued to shuffle about, grabbing whatever belonged to you.
Freddie sighed, silently empathizing with you. He wanted to continue to express his disdain for Brian's shocking behaviour, just so that you knew how much he supported you - but he understood that going on about it was only going to upset you further.
With all that you were presently overwhelmed by, the last thing you needed was the constant reminder of what had only just become known to you.
So, in a bid to change the topic, Freddie glanced about the room.
"Okay, new topic - where is Jasper?" he referred to the beautiful grey cat that you and Brian had adopted shortly after you'd first moved into the apartment.
"I...don't know, probably in the bedroom, upstairs," you mumbled haphazardly, still trying to get your things organized.
"Okay, you're bringing him with you, but let me go find him first," he snickered, heading toward the staircase.
At Freddie's choice of words, your head shot up so that you could look at him, and from the way he was grinning back at you, it was obvious that he had expected that reaction from you.
He knew you too well.
"'Bringing him'?" you raised your eyebrows.
"Yes, Precious Bean, when you're all packed up, you're coming to stay with me," he shrugged, gradually turning back to make his way up the staircase. "You'd be bonkers to believe that I'd let you go anywhere else,"
Since he had already begun jogging up the staircase when he had spoken his last few words, you hadn't gotten the opportunity to respond. It was true - there was no way Freddie was going to allow you to seek shelter anywhere else, especially if he had a hand in it.
You smiled to yourself as you continued to move about, and if you hadn't already cried your eyes out at the studio building, you would have teared up at the present moment.
Your movements were quick and purposeful, but even though you appeared robotic in your arrangements to leave, you were a bundle of mixed emotions on the inside. What you really wanted to do was collapse onto the floor and cry until your voice broke - but that wasn't going to solve anything.
Leaving for some time wasn't going to solve anything either, but it certainly was going to help you find the clarity you needed in order to find some sort of solution for the predicament at hand.
At that point in your life, you hated Brian for what he had done - but only because you loved him more than words could have said.
But all of your emotions were now mixed, and you were only going to spiral into further fruitless discord if you stayed at the apartment - because Brian would undoubtedly have convinced you to stay, despite your frustration.
Whilst grabbing your purse, that rested on the display table in front of you, your hand brushed against the surface of a little red gift box - one that you recognized, because you had placed it there..
It was empty, but you had placed it there for a reason that had taken a good minute for you to have remembered - even though you should have recalled it immediately, because it was very important.
It was something that you had intended to surprise Brian with when he did return home again.
Except the most important aspect of the surprise was still in the bathroom that stood connected to your bedroom, making you gasp as you spun around.
For a split second, you were going to try to get Freddie to leave your bedroom, just so that he wouldn't stumble upon it - but you were too late. By the time you had swivelled around, Freddie had descended the last few steps of the staircase, the unmistakable test in his hand.
His eyes were wide with both delight and nervousness.
"Well..." he trailed off, walking over to you. "I didn't find Jasper, but I did manage to find this," he held the test up, upon which you swiftly snatched it away from him. "Is it true?" he asked.
You stared down at the positive test for a few seconds before you sighed, haphazardly shoving it into the pocket of your coat.
"Yeah," you whispered, looking away. "I...found out this morning - ironically," you scoffed to yourself.
And it was at that very moment that the hostility of your reaction had made perfect sense - because on the day that was supposed to be a discovery of great joy, your heart had been shattered by the one person you trusted wholeheartedly.
"You're pregnant?!" Freddie broke into an excited laugh. "Oh my goodness, my Precious Bean is-" he left his sentence unfinished when he saw you lower your head sadly.
The news ought to have been one of the best stages in your life, but after everything had happened, all you could feel was intense apprehension as you thought about the future. You did not know what to do - yet, at least.
How did one react when learning of their beloved's infidelity whilst having recently discovered that they were expecting?
Freddie hastily moved closer to you so that he could pull you into a reassuring embrace, making you break down all over again.
"Hey, Precious Bean, don't cry, please," he rubbed your back.
"I...I don't know what to do," your emotions overflowed with your tears and your flighty tone. "This is such a mess, Fred, I..." you trailed off, your distress overpowering your ability to speak.
"We'll figure it out together, darling," he insisted, holding you closer. "The boys and I are always here with you - you couldn't get rid of us if you tried. Whatever you choose, you are not going to be doing it alone,"
After a few seconds, he pulled back so that he could bring his hands up to your face, brushing away the tears that had once again stained your cheeks.
"You don't ever have to feel afraid, alright? You will always have us," he repeated. "Although, the dumbass' status is still pending," he rolled his eyes, referring to Brian.
Once more, in spite of your sorrow, Freddie's antics had still managed to elicit a laugh from you, cheering you up ever so slightly.
Just then, the sudden sound of a pressure cooker had torn through the air, emnating from the kitchen.
You and Freddie jumped, absolutely taken aback by the sound.
"What the hell?" you frowned.
You were instantly alarmed, because you had not set the pressure cooker on before you'd left the house - in fact, you hadn't touched that cooking utility for weeks.
Freddie's face changed as well when he picked up on your bewilderment.
Without another thought, you stepped aside and raced toward the kitchen, Freddie speedily following close behind.
Sure enough, when you'd burst into the kitchen, the pressure cooker was placed atop the stove, which was lit. There was a concentrated flow of steam shooting upwards, indicating that it was time to turn everything off.
The faint smell of cooked meat could be detected in the air, making you even more confused.
Quickly, you grabbed a medium-sized hand towel to aid you in your efforts - just so that you didn't wind up burning yourself.
You took the necessary steps to release the pressure before you finally opened it altogether - and when you did, your stomach turned violently as you let out a horrified scream.
Freddie sped up behind you, alarmed by your shriek.
"Precious Bean-"
He was also left speechless when he set eyes on what you were looking at, his face drained of all colour.
"Jesus Christ," Freddie gasped, instinctively pulling you away.
Inside of the cooker was the unmistakable form of the pet that you had loved so dearly.
You brought your hands up to cover your mouth as you stumbled back, trembling and hyperventilating.
Freddie's jaw was tight, and you could tell that he was struggling not to regurgitate - the both of you were struggling not to regurgitate.
He turned around and shifted toward you, his first priority to comfort you and get you out of that room, for the sight was too devastating - something straight out of hell.
Who could possibly have done something so inhumane?
And what did it mean?
"Come on, Precious Bean, we need to call the police - this is insane,"
But that was only the beginning.
•✦⊱···············🧸···············⊰✦•
𝐀 𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐓𝐋𝐄 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄:
───────────
𝐎𝐤𝐚𝐲 𝐬𝐨 𝐠𝐮𝐲𝐬, 𝐈 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐲 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐩𝐢𝐝, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐈 𝐛𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐚 𝐢𝐧 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝, 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐢𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐚 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐲 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐲 𝐚𝐥𝐥-𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐦𝐬.
𝐀𝐥𝐬𝐨, 𝐚𝐬 𝐈 𝐰𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞, 𝐈'𝐦 𝐬𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐚 𝐒𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐄 𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐢𝐜 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐲 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐬𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐚 𝐬𝐧𝐚𝐩𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐭𝐞𝐫, 𝐬𝐨 𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐦𝐞 𝐢𝐟 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 (𝐈 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐚 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤, 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐈?).
𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐢𝐭'𝐬 𝐚 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐝𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 - 𝐈 𝐰𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭'𝐬 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭.
𝐑𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬, 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐒𝐎 𝐌𝐔𝐂𝐇 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞, 𝐈 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐫𝐞!
𝐎𝐡, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐨 𝐥𝐞𝐭 𝐦𝐞 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮'𝐝 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐚 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 - 𝐈 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐦𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐞'𝐬 𝐜𝐮𝐩 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐞𝐚, 𝐬𝐨 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐚 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭, 𝐈 𝐰𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐮𝐞; 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐧𝐨𝐭.
𝐈 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐬𝐨 𝐦𝐮𝐜𝐡!!
𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄, 𝐒𝐎𝐔𝐋𝐀
♥𝓢𝓸𝓾𝓵𝓪𝓜𝓪𝔂♥
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