[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/ZOgwclL.png[/img]
[img]https://i.imgur.com/BQWdoGj.png[/img]

[color=darkgray][i][sub]A [@metanoia] & [@Rosalia] Collaboration
[b]Featuring [color=#BF99DC]Joey Hart[/color] & [color=#FF00FF]Charlotte Diedrikson[/color][/b][/sub][/i][/color]
[color=#FF00FF]▃[/color][color=#FD03FE]▃[/color][color=#FC06FD]▃[/color][color=#FB09FC]▃[/color][color=#FA0CFC]▃[/color][color=#F80FFB]▃[/color][color=#F712FA]▃[/color][color=#F615FA]▃[/color][color=#F518F9]▃[/color][color=#F31BF8]▃[/color][color=#F21EF8]▃[/color][color=#F121F7]▃[/color][color=#F024F6]▃[/color][color=#EE27F6]▃[/color][color=#ED2AF5]▃[/color][color=#EC2DF4]▃[/color][color=#EB30F4]▃[/color][color=#E933F3]▃[/color][color=#E836F2]▃[/color][color=#E739F2]▃[/color][color=#E63CF1]▃[/color][color=#E43FF0]▃[/color][color=#E342F0]▃[/color][color=#E245EF]▃[/color][color=#E148EE]▃[/color][color=#DF4BEE]▃[/color][color=#DE4EED]▃[/color][color=#DD51EC]▃[/color][color=#DC54EC]▃[/color][color=#DA57EB]▃[/color][color=#D95AEA]▃[/color][color=#D85DEA]▃[/color][color=#D760E9]▃[/color][color=#D563E8]▃[/color][color=#D466E8]▃[/color][color=#D369E7]▃[/color][color=#D26CE6]▃[/color][color=#D06FE6]▃[/color][color=#CF72E5]▃[/color][color=#CE75E4]▃[/color][color=#CD78E4]▃[/color][color=#CB7BE3]▃[/color][color=#CA7EE2]▃[/color][color=#C981E2]▃[/color][color=#C884E1]▃[/color][color=#C687E0]▃[/color][color=#C58AE0]▃[/color][color=#C48DDF]▃[/color][color=#C390DE]▃[/color][color=#C193DE]▃[/color][color=#C096DD]▃[/color][color=#BF99DC]▃[/color]
[/center]
[color=darkgray][indent][indent][color=#BF99DC]“What!?”[/color] Joey exclaimed. Sitting near the back and as close to the exit of the auditorium as she could manage, Joey sat in her seat, bearing witness to such a travesty that it made her physically ill on top of actually being physically ill.

It’s true, Joey wasn’t feeling like her best self. She barely talked to anyone for most of the day yesterday but that was mostly due to how weak she felt after getting back to the sorority house. She didn’t know if it was the mild heartbreak of seeing Lottie and Kieran, the indigestion from a 3AM snack that didn’t agree with her or the remnants of the effect of the E that she stupidly took, thinking it was a good idea and that it would make her feel better. In the moment it did, but the moment passed and for over 24 hours, Joey immediately regretted it.

Sitting there, yeah she was trying to stomach the news of academic probation. She shared the sentiments of those who thought it was [code]unfair[/code], an [code]abuse of power[/code], and just flat out [code]rude[/code]. But then you had some who, similarly to Joey, were too hungover from the Bash to register exactly what happened. And the truth was, as much as she was feeling all types of nauseous, Joey had bigger things to worry about. Of course she had seen the video and of course she knew that Cass and Theo probably were most to blame, but she didn’t want to cast the blame solely on them, not when she was at the party too and especially not when she indulged in some of the illegal activity the Headmistress explained. Besides…

[i]buzzbuzzbuzz[/i]

Inside her striped shirt front pocket, over the left side of her chest, Joey felt a strong vibration from her phone. She ignored it for the time-being but then she felt another and then another. It was at the point she checked it just so she could shut it off. Before that could happen, however, she read the message quickly. It mentioned Jasper and it seemed to come from that cutie Nathan Blake. Joey also realized one, little discrepancy. [color=#BF99DC]“Nate, he didn’t…”[/color] She giggled, though part of her did feel bad. He was probably in for a world of hurt, especially if a certain twin brother found out.

Joey wasn’t sure if she should feel terrible for not caring enough about Nate’s ordeal or not, but she thought about it more and pocketed her phone, moving her legs along to the courtyard, taking a seat on the cool, refreshing grass under a pine tree.  Her legs were brought halfway to her chest and Joey fooled around on her phone, face-timing with her twin brother. [color=#BF99DC]“[url=https://i0.wp.com/www.starmometer.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Pietro-Boselli.jpg?fit=719%2C525]Brad[/url], hey! What time is it for you?”[/color]

[color=#76a5af]“A little after five,”[/color] Brad said, smiling at Joey’s weary face. [color=#76a5af]“You look like hell.”[/color]

Joey laughed. [color=#BF99DC]“Gee thanks,”[/color] she said, shaking her head with a smile. [color=#BF99DC]“You don’t look so hot yourself,”[/color] she teased, partially sticking her tongue out of her twin. 

It had been nearly nearly two years since Brad had enlisted in the Navy. Joey hadn’t graduated from the English boarding school she was shipped off to after their sweet sixteen and he was already off to their form of basic training. So, really, the only chances she had to talk, let alone see Brad, was on the off chance his shore leave was near wherever she was staying at, or their bi-weekly facetime chats. She treasured these moments and anything else was non-essential.

[color=#BF99DC]“So, what’s going on?”[/color] Joey asked. Before she got an answer, she happened to look up and there was Lottie, walking over. Rolling her eyes, she sighed and glanced down at her screen. [color=#BF99DC]“Sorry, I’ll have to call you later.”[/color]

[color=#76a5af]“Oh,”[/color] Brad said, disappointed, [color=#76a5af]“Well I’ll be free for the next five hours. Nothing to do here. Talk later then!”[/color] Brad waved and kissed before the call ended.

Joey stayed seated but brought her legs closer to her and balanced her phone  in her lap and looked up. [color=#BF99DC]“Hey,”[/color] Joey said, half-smiling up at the petite blonde that towered over her.

[color=magenta]“What the fuck is up with that?!”[/color] Lottie cried out as soon as she’d reached her girl, jerking her head in the direction of the auditorium they’d just left and plopping herself next to Joey. [color=magenta]“They can’t just put everyone in probation! Do they even realize what that means for the athletes and the artists?! And, like: how do they even know if I was at that party or not?! For all they know, I was watching Netflix in bed with you the whole weekend! Or at least that’s what I told Dad, anyway. He wasn’t happy when we talked, but after I swore up and down I hadn’t been near that party he told me he was looking into it. And you know when DA Diedrikson says he’s gonna look into it, whoever’s in his way better be in for a war.”[/color]

Her smile lessened, though it still held its u-shape. She had spent most of the time Lottie did complaining glancing at her phone, checking for messages, so a lot of what the blonde girl had said went in one ear and out the other. She caught the last of it, though and found herself nodding, if not slowly. [color=#BF99DC]“Yeah, I’m sure,”[/color] Joey said, her head lifting itself up and resting against the cool bark, its rough surface providing a weird, relaxing calm for Joey’s rising annoyance. [color=#BF99DC]“So what’s up?”[/color] She asked.

When you knew someone as well as Lottie did Joey, it didn’t take long to notice the signs when something was bothering her. The body language, the lack of enthusiasm and intentional disinterest in what was being said… It was textbook ‘Joey is annoyed’ behavior. The question was what, out of all the million reasons she could have, was the main reason for her annoyance. 

[color=magenta]“I guess I should be asking you that,”[/color] the blonde said curtly, her cheerful manner giving way to a cautious curiosity. [color=magenta]“What’s up with you, J? Everything okay?”[/color]

[color=#BF99DC]“Oh, I’m fine. Couldn’t be better! Absolutely peachy!”[/color] She wasn’t able to pull off sarcasm like most would. When she attempted it, it sounded more like someone putting on their best, [i]fake[/i] impersonation of a person successfully using sarcasm. When she did it, the blanket that she typically put over herself to hide her true feelings was nonexistent. She looked at Lottie  and asked, [color=#BF99DC]“Why do you ask?”[/color]

Uh oh. This wasn’t good. [color=magenta]“Oh, I don’t know, maybe because of how you’re acting right now?”[/color] Lottie quickly shot back, her eyebrows knitted together in a frown now. She didn’t appreciate the tone Joey was taking with her. She was her girlfriend, and they were supposed to be open and honest with each other.

Joey rolled her eyes, not bothering to turn her head around to hide it from Lottie. And since she wasn’t doing anything to hide how she really felt (aside from outright admitting it), she put her phone in her pocket and stood up. [color=#BF99DC]“Sorry but I have to pee,”[/color] she said, abruptly walking away and to the nearest women’s bathroom she could find, which happened to be a lot closer to the auditorium than she thought and she went inside.

[color=magenta]“Don’t apologize, because I’m not leaving you alone until you tell me what’s up,”[/color] Lottie called out after her, hurrying away after Joey and taking guard outside the door of the bathroom stall she had occupied. [color=magenta]“I’m still here, Jo. I’m not going anywhere, so you might as well just tell me what’s going on or we’ll be here all day.”[/color]

Her ruse didn’t work. She didn’t have to pee, but she knew Lottie knew that she had a weak bladder, so that excuse was an easy one to rely on. She was just going to [i]head[/i] in the direction of the bathroom and go somewhere else, but when she saw Lottie had started to  follow her and was hot on her trail, she had no choice but to actually go inside. [color=#BF99DC]“You’re going to be waiting a while!”[/color] Joey shouted from inside the stall. [color=#BF99DC]“I drank a lot of water this morning.”[/color] Another lie. She didn’t feel like talking and just wanted to be left alone but Lottie, the Persister, didn’t get the memo.

[color=magenta]“I’ve got all the time in the world, pumpkin!”[/color] the short girl insisted, crossing her arms in front of her chest and making no motion to leave the bathroom. There was no way she would be letting this go anytime soon. Charlotte knew that the longer whatever was happening festered inside of Joey, the worse it would be when things finally exploded. [color=magenta]“You can talk and pee at the same time, you know. Your mouth doesn’t stop working when your bladder does.”[/color]

She sat on the shockingly clean toilet seat, repeatedly tapping her left foot while she considered all of her options. Lottie not leaving made her anxious and knowing she wasn’t going to leave wasn’t doing much for the bottomless pit-like feeling she felt in her gut. The longer she sat there, the more she remained fixated on a singular image: the sight of Lottie with Kieran. It played back like it was the only thing she could see. The result of that was her current mood. And it festered. She didn’t want to feel like this nor could she explain [i]why[/i].

But in a moment that flew by her, so did the stall door and Joey rushed out, passing Lottie by and stopping in front of the sink. She glanced up at the mirror, turning her head slightly to the right and gave the blonde as much attention as she could muster. [color=#BF99DC]“Why are you even here, Lo?”[/color] Joey asked. [color=#BF99DC]“I thought for sure you would have been clinging to Kiki any moment you got the chance to.”[/color] She remembered exactly how desperate Lo was to see Kiki, so her being here [i]now[/i], even after Joey had excused herself, didn’t make a lot of sense to her. [color=#BF99DC]“Or did you guys get enough time together in the cabin and [i]now[/i] you want to be with me?”[/color] She asked bitterly.

[color=magenta]“You can’t be serious…”[/color] Lottie muttered in disbelief, slowly shaking her head before turning to stare at Joey. Out of all the possible things that could be bothering her girlfriend, this was possibly the last one Charlotte was expecting. And the more she thought about it, the dumber it sounded. [color=magenta]“[i]That’s[/i] why you’re mad? Because I wanted to spend time with Kiki after months of not seeing him, and even after the however many times we hung out during the summer?”[/color]

[color=#BF99DC]“It’s not because you wanted to spend time with him or even that you spent the summer with me,”[/color] Joey said, facing Lottie, hand positioned on the edge of the sink. [color=#BF99DC]“It’s that you didn’t even bother asking if [i]I[/i] wanted to spend time with him as well!”[/color] Joey shouted, her voice cracking. Echoing. [color=#BF99DC]“Instead, you just went up and left me without so much of a goodbye.”[/color] Her hand gripped tightly on the edge of the white sink.

[color=magenta]“Are you listening to yourself right now?!”[/color] Charlotte yelled back, the absurdity of this whole argument making her scoff. What in the actual fuck was happening right now? [color=magenta]“You’re pissed at me because I didn’t say [i]bye[/i] to you, Joanna?! [i]Seriously[/i]?! Are you jealous of Kiki or something? Because I’ve been hooking up with him for three years now without it being a problem! Why is this suddenly all a big fucking deal?”[/color] She had no idea what had gotten into Joey, but whatever it was needed to go [i]now[/i].

Joey wished she could tell Lottie the reason why. She wished that she had an answer that made sense, but the soul-crushing truth was she didn’t because even Joey didn’t know why. Yes, it was true that she had literally no problems with her and Kieran, well until a couple of days ago. Even them talking about him didn’t strike a chord, but something changed the moment she ran into Kieran’s arms. For nearly two days (when she was thinking about it), she tried to come up with a reason as to why she was so angry, why she felt so betrayed, and why she had kissed Jade for (mostly) all the wrong reasons. 

At the end of it all, she couldn’t and that’s what frustrated her the most. That’s why she’s been moody and it’s why she couldn’t bring herself to look Lottie in the eyes. She knew her girlfriend was right. She knew it and it irritated her even more. Moments before speaking, she let out a defeated sigh. [color=#BF99DC]“What’s the point in telling you? It won’t change anything,”[/color] Joey said quietly, though still loud enough for Lottie to hear her.

As much as Charlotte wanted to stay angry at Joey, there was no way her girlfriend’s crestfallen expression and defeated tone didn’t tug at her heartstrings. She hated seeing her hurting, hated making her sad, and hated knowing she was the reason behind it all. [color=magenta]“Baby, what’s going on?”[/color] Lottie asked the platinum-haired girl in a kinder voice, reaching out to cup Joey’s face in her hands and basically pleading with her eyes for an answer. [color=magenta]“Tell me what I’m doing wrong so I can fix it. I love you, okay? You know I don’t want to see you like this.”[/color]

When Lottie’s hand came to caress Joey’s cheek, she immediately slapped it away and stepped back about a foot and a half. [color=#BF99DC]“Then don’t! Go see your precious Kiki instead!”[/color] Joey’s venomous words came out and she knew they stung harder than anything Joey had said in a long time.

The spite in Joanna’s words hurt Charlotte harder than any injury she had ever suffered in her life, even as an athlete. The blonde could almost hear her heart shattering in her chest, filling her with a pain she’d never thought possible. For the last three years, Lottie had devoted her time to making her girlfriend the happiest, most spoiled girl she could be. Here she had been: making sure her JoJo was loved and cared for in her highs and lows, in all circumstances, unconditionally. And this is how she was paying her back? By pushing her away and hurting her with harsh words-- all over an unsaid [i]goodbye[/i]?

Nope, not happening. Not on her watch.

Although her eyes were full of tears that were quickly streaming down her cheeks, Charlotte icy resolve was definite. [color=magenta]“You know what? I’m going to do just that,”[/color] she said coldly, walking past Joey with squared shoulders. She was about to reach the exit when she turned to face the girl one last time. And even when she knew what she would say next was probably the last nail in the coffin, Lottie knew it needed to be done for her own peace of mind. [color=magenta]“I’m done with you, Joanna. I’m done with all of this nonsense. After all that we’ve been through, I don’t deserve to be treated this way, and I’m not going to put up with it. I’m going to crash at Mac’s for a few weeks, or at least until I get the living part figured out for the rest of the semester. I’ll get my stuff from your room after practice and be gone before you’re back.”[/color] And with one last sigh, Charlotte turned on her heel and walked away.

[color=#BF99DC][indent][i]Wait. Don’t go. I’m sorry.[/i][/indent][/color]
Joey’s voice betrayed her. Her timing was too little and way too late for it to matter; and when it set in, so did she onto the ground. She gripped the sink until the shortness of her arm fell down, smacking on the tiled floor. There she sat, cold and alone. She craved comfort but in solitude, the only one to comfort her were fractured memories and a broken heart barely holding itself together.[/indent][/indent][/color]