a place we know| ✓

thirty three

"And find a place where every single thing you see tells you to stay."
S E E K E R
.
.
January 6th
12:32 PM
New York
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Audrey sat Gunner down, but as soon as silence came upon the small living area, interrupted only by the hot friction grating between them, lost the ability to speak.

He, too, was walking the same thin line. His face tense, his eyes still, almost as if he weren't really seeing her, but something of a close resemblance. There was so much to say and every thought that came was mixed up with every other thought, rendering her brain a puddle of distraught.

Audrey opened her mouth, hoping for the sentences to form themselves, but closed it when she heard nothing. Inhaling, she tried to pump the words out again to no avail.

"You're scaring me, Rey." Gunner's face wavered like a ripple in the tide. "Is it me? Did I do something?"

"No, this isn't about you." Those words came first. After hearing herself speak, she found it a bit easier to continue talking. "It's something else."

"Like what?"

Her bones were starting to shake and her lungs were in desperate search of air, savouring every bit of oxygen they received. But breathing became an insufferable task when her heart was warped with woe. It seemed pointless to even bring it up to her boyfriend. What could he even do? It happened and it was over with, but she felt like she was still holding on to the past. Holding on to something she should have let go of.

Her hazel eyes layered, sheen with tears and lips pinched in a grim smile. "I'm sorry for the way things have been lately." She was filled with heavy emotions. "I've been so harsh and unfair lately."

He assessed her, mouth parted as if to speak but his mind in conflict.

"So, I'm sorry," Audrey murmured softly.

"There's no need to apologize, Rey."

Her breaths became ragged. "Please don't hate me, Gun."

"I could never."

The wind sang, its melody leaking in through the cracks in the window. Snow followed and fell in flurries thicker than they were used to. The weather was ill-tempered; the wind no longer sang, but howled, tapped its icy claws against the glass and brought with it a white blanket to drape over the city.

The temperature inside dropped and she could feel it freezing her deep within her core. "It's about Michael."

Gunner gave no response, but his eyes were a mirror of the loathsome feelings he bore towards that man. "What about him?"

A blast of air struck the glass pane and the blustery weather groaned, filtering into the apartment. Audrey crept closer to her boyfriend, seeking his hand for assurance. It was as though everything was warning her not to tell Gunner the truth. That tiny voice in her mind told her to keep it a secret. She had no idea what the outcome would be once she told him. She was fearful that he would leave her or find an excuse to walk away from their relationship. In his eyes, she didn't have the best track record when it came to Michael. The fact that she had previously slept with him didn't help her case. He might have thought she was lying because he wanted to sleep with Michael, but that wasn't true at all.

"Audrey," Gunner's hand gently squeezed her own, his voice a soothing tune. "What did Michael do?"

"He and I," she blurted, hot with shame. "It happened recently. On New Years we–"