The apartment that's always been filled with laughter and barking and singing and dancing and smells of baked goods and wet dog is silent and still.
It's uncomfortable.
Winnie must've texted Tatem
and asked her to grab her stuff, because her bedroom door is open and the flat is bare of all four-legged friends.
You and Serena are alone.
Unlike the kind of loneliness that was welcome after your first date, the air is tense. Serena hasn't spoken since she told you to get in the car at the theater. Her lips were pursed on the drive home, and she fiddled with the radio before shutting it off, leaving the two of you in deafening quiet.
"Melanie." Serena steps into the apartment, her perfectly straightened mahogany hair all mussed up from the movie. Her teal eyes are icy cold, but watery. As if anything you say has the potential to break her anger.
"Serena-"
"No." She cuts you off forcefully. "No, it's my turn now." You just nod, too afraid of her now blazing state of rage.
"It's been a long time since I've decided to date anybody. You were the first significant other in my life since my first two years of college." And wow, really? Serena's fucking gorgeous. She most likely has guys and girls alike licking the ground that she walks on, just trying to catch her attention.
"When I saw you at that Halloween party, I was thrilled, because I thought I finally had a chance to be happy." She exhales.
"You're absolutely beautiful, Melanie Anais Robbins. Your personality is captivating, and I thought that I'd be overjoyed at the prospect of spending the rest of my goddamn life at the side of you, a stunning woman." And then Serena sighs. "But you don't love me."
You open your mouth to say something, anything.
"You love her." Serena's voice is bitter.
"Red, what-"
"Oh, don't be ridiculous, Melanie!" The two of you are going to get a noise complaint if you don't lower your volume, but Serena doesn't seem to care right now. "You are completely, totally, irrevocably in love with Winnie Seaford!" Her voice gets a little choked up before she adds a small "Not me."
And you?
You laugh.
Your sides start to hurt and your cheeks start to burn but the laughter can't, won't cease.
Because that's ridiculous.
You love Winnie. Of course you love her, she's your best fucking friend!
Probably not anymore, but still.
That doesn't mean you're in love with her.
"Serena, we've talked about this-"
"NO!" She shrieks. "LET ME TALK!"
You nod, partly in submission, partly in fear.
You've never seen Serena so mad.
"We've been dating for seven fucking months, Melanie! You haven't said 'I love you' to me, not once!"
Serena's first 'I love you' came only a few weeks into the relationship. She had said it eleven times since then.
You recognize that she's right. You had never said it back. You'd only smiled and kissed her some more.
The spark that had attracted you to the redhead had disappeared long ago.
"You took the two of us on a date tonight, Melanie. Not because you wanted to spend time with me, because you wanted to stalk her on her first date with a completely respectable guy! The entire night, you were out of it, and I tried to ignore it, but after the stunt you just pulled..." All of Serena's fire melts. Her shoulders slump.
"Melanie."
"Serena?"
"I don't think that this relationship is working out."
"... Serena?"
"I think we should break up."
"Serena, I-"
"No." Her eyes meet yours. They're red from all the tears you've caused, her cheeks blotchy. "I tried so hard to save a relationship that can't be saved. You're in love with her. Not me. And," her eyes shift back to the floor, "it's time for me to accept that."
"Serena, I love you." The words sound distorted to your own ears. Serena's face is stone-cold,her tone sober.
"No, you don't. It's time for you to stop lying to me and to her. Because what you're doing right now, lying about your feelings to make me feel better? That's only making this situation worse."
You're desperate now. "But Serena, I love you!"
"Stop!" She covers her ears. "I hate you, Melanie! You're a bitch!"
You move to grab her hand.
"Don't fucking touch me!" She spits, her words filled with poison. "If I were you, Melanie, I would lose my number." She slams the door so hard that a few of the cat stickers on the door frame fall off from the force.
You blink once, twice, three times.
You pinch yourself.
"Ouch!" You jump.
It's not a dream.
Red is gone.
And you don't think she's ever coming back.
You collapse to the floor.
And in a moment of pure weakness, all alone on the worst day of your life in a quiet, empty apartment, you begin to cry.
_______________________________
Dean drops her off at Tatem's. The younger girl had already retrieved everything Winnie might need for the next few weeks. By the way Winnie was sobbing when she had called, it sounded like whatever this fight was wouldn't be able to be resolved in a few days.
"Maybe you should just move in with me."
"Tate."
"Sorry, bad timing."
"Yeah. Hi, Lambeau. Hey, Tigger."
"You guys'll get through this, Winnie. You always do."
"You didn't hear her, Tate. You didn't hear me."
"It couldn't have been that bad, right?"
"I don't think our friendship will ever be the same."
_______________________________
Link and Joey both stopped by at different times to make sure you were eating and drinking water.
They left as soon as they were sure you were alive.
You listen to the Lovely Leviathans album Winnie had put on your phone.
Skeletons dance through the forest of fog and ghosts
I scream and I call your name, nobody's left to hold close
These caverns and mountains entomb me like catacombs
Try as I may, there's no way for me to get home
So let the storm sweep in
Lighting up my path
I'm lost within the woods
I'd rather not face the monsters alone
But I don't have a choice, I'm all on my own
Thunder crashes down on me
The girl who lost herself to history
We all make mistakes, we all make mistakes
But you couldn't forgive, you had to be bitter
Trapped inside the walls of trees and stones
Poisonous mind with brittle and breakable bones
And the lyrics sink you down into self pity.
A familiar number calls you, and you pick up.
"Hey, Mels. I bought ice cream. I'm headed to your apartment now."
Link.
At least you have one friend in all of this drama.
______________________________
"Winnie."
"Hmm?"
"Winnie, your ice cream's melted.
"Oh."
"Winnie, you're scaring me. It's been two weeks."
"Tate, I'm okay. C'mere, Lambeau."
"Wins, stop lying to me."
"Tatem, I don't want to talk about it."
"But-"
"I'm gonna order Thai food from that place down the street. Do you want anything?"
"No. And Winnie?"
"Hmm?"
"This conversation is far from over."
"I'm aware, Tate. Trust me."
______________________________
The door is open within forty seconds.
"Oh, sweetheart..." She wraps the shorter girl in a hug.
"I loved her," she whimpers, soaking her roommate's sweater as she buries her face into her shoulder.
"Now I wish you had let me scare her off."
"It wouldn't have made a difference," she sniffles, "I fall too hard for people who don't fall hard enough. It's my nature."
"I know, sweet cheeks."
"And the worst part is Melanie is completely capable of falling hard, because she's done it for Winnie, but she's incapable of loving me because of Winnie! And obviously I can't hate Winnie, because she's done absolutely nothing wrong!"
"I know, Serena." The taller woman rubs her friend's back.
"Pepper? Can we just have a girl's night? Diss people, binge on junk food, watch crappy 80s movies?"
Her roommate's russet eyes twinkle with laughter.
"Of course, 'Rena."
________________________________
"Morning, lover."
"Morning, Link. How is she?"
"Uh, coping, I think. She only cried on my chest for two hours yesterday instead of three."
"Shit, that bad?"
"Worse, I think. According to Tate, Winnie won't even bring it up."
"That's not a good sign."
"No, it's not. But they're Melanie and Winnie. They'll be fine, right?"
"God, I hope so."
________________________________
"Everything sucks, Wally."
"Winnie, I can't exactly be right over. I live in Boston, remember?"
"Yeah, but-"
"Why don't you tell me what happened?"
"I don't wanna."
"Winnie, you're pouting."
"Winnie, you're pouting."
"This is completely immature."
"This is completely immature."
"Really? Look, if I know one thing, it's that you and Melanie always work through everything. That's the best part of your friendship. Think of all the things that went wrong that first year you guys were friends, and all the things you were able to fix together."
"Wally, it's never been this bad. I'm scared."
"Winnie, you're going to be okay. And if you're not, I'll come straight to Illinois to beat Mel's ass. Sound good?"
"Fine. Bye, Wally."
"Bye, Winnie."
______________________________
"So Winnie went out with Dean, Melanie went out with Serena, but Melanie is in love with Winnie, and broke up with Serena..."
"Serena broke up with her."
"Right, because Melanie and Winnie had a fight. But Winnie is still going out with Dean..."
"And now literally everyone except Dean is crying."
"Wow, their lives are dramatic. You think we should get involved?"
"Kam, you're due any day now. Getting involved would be too stressful on you and the baby."
"We really should decide on a name, by the way."
"Well, I already suggested Maria."
"What about Artemis?"
"We're not naming her after a superhero."
"Zatanna?"
"What did I just say?"
"Wow, we're bad at this."
"We're procrastinators till our dying days."
"Obviously, it's- Oh!"
"Kam? Kam, what's wrong?"
"Marco?"
"Kam?"
"I think my water just broke."
________________________________
TO BE CONTINUED...