The building's plumbing was old and the water running inside the walls and floor made a lot of noise, even after Nicole left the shower. It was an annoying sound she never grew used to, yet not as annoying as her neighbours' yelling.

She brushed her wet hair in front of the foggy mirror, hoping the uninvited guest would leave before she was out of the bathroom. Luck wasn't on her side that day, as her roommate started banging on the door, urging her to leave. Nicole rolled her eyes and opened the door, letting her in the small, humid bathroom.

The pretty brunette was Carolina. She was not always home, since she spent most days and nights with her boyfriend. Lucas met her through Nicole, who had met him through her ex-boyfriend. They were so lovesick with each other they made her gag.

Still wrapped in a towel, she left the tiny space and flew straight to her bedroom to get dressed. The rent was extremely exaggerated for a loft that could fit inside the average living room, but she was content enough with her tiny room with only a bed, a wardrobe, and a desk.

Nicole liked mini skirts and lace tights, the exact opposite of her roommate, who was all pinks and furs. She dressed in a pair of ripped jeans and a tight long sleeve, stealing one of Carol's warm coats.

She went to the kitchen to have breakfast and spotted Lucas, who had spent the night in the room right next to Nicole's, was lying on the small sofa in the living room wearing only his underwear, per usual. Calling it a living room was a stretch, but they preferred to pretend it was a separated division instead of admitting having one room as kitchen, living room, dining room and hall.

Nicole stared at him as she put her bread in the toaster. The peninsula was the only thing separating the eating from the leisure zone, yet gave her a good view of the pink sofa where he ate cereals and watched the news.

"You know there's a table, right?" She asked. "It's small, but it has four chairs. We're only three here."

He felt her eyes burning holes in the back of his head, yet didn't move to look at them. Before she could protest any further, he got up and sat at the table beside her, almost glued to the counter.

"Good morning to you, too." He mumbled and kept eating, staring at the TV.

Nicole kept making her breakfast, spreading butter on her toast and filling a mug with hot, steamy coffee.

"Lucas!" Carolina yelled, peaking at the door and staring straight at Nicole.

"In the dining room." She answered dryly.

"Oh," she snorted, moving her head only a little to the left. "Where did you put my hairbrush?"

He frowned. "Why would I use your hairbrush?"

She made a face, as if he really had to pretend he didn't spend half an hour looking at himself in the mirror to compose his hair. It wasn't a secret for anyone in that room; it was pointless to play dumb.

"You probably misplaced it." He excused himself.

"Use mine." Nicole told her, noticing he would not talk.

Carolina left again, and they were once again alone. In the very beginning, they would've fallen into an awkward silence, but now they were just used to co-existing with each other, even if they weren't talking.

She placed her breakfast on the table, picking a seat that didn't cover his view of the TV, but just as she was about to sit, three urgent knocks on the door made her stop. They stared at each other, waiting to see which one would do the honours of opening the door.

"If you're here," he started, "and I'm here, and Carol is here... who would..."

"It's probably Ali." She stopped his theorising, going to the door.

The blue-haired girl walked into the room, out of breath, as soon as the door moved. She threw herself on the sofa and stared at ceiling.

"Good morning!" Lucas greeted, but it was actually a complaint to the girls' rudeness.

"My life is a mess!" Alice cried.

Nicole closed the door, not bothering to ask. Alice would tell her or she wouldn't have come, and it was obvious Carolina had heard her since she ran to the living room to be with her.

"What's wrong, darling?" The brunette asked, sitting on the floor by her side.

"It's Andrew."

Nicole snorted, as if already guessing, and sat by Lucas' side to have breakfast. Love messes weren't her area of expertize and she wasn't interested in them either, but Carolina lived for them. Maybe her relationship was as pink as her wardrobe, but giving love advice was her passion. The moment Alice met Andrew was like a dream come true.

"What happened?"

"I went to his place yesterday to watch a movie." She began. "Did you know he lives in the Stone Mansion? He's loaded!"

They had named it because of the white walls partially covered by flat stones. Before they all met, Miguel used to hang out with a group of guys who found the place completely deserted and spent the summer trespassing to use the swimming pool. The water was green and dirty from the years without being cleaned, but they didn't care.

Miguel had tried to take Nicole with him one time, but once she saw the water, she refused to swim with them. They never came back once she found out the house didn't belong to any of his friends and spent the afternoon yelling at him.

"Yeah, Miguel told me about it!" Lucas perked up. "Not that it was his, just that they had gone there at the end of summer and the pool was clean. The alarm went crazy when they tried force entry in the outbuilding."

"That's not the point!" Alice grumbled. "He didn't tell me! And he also didn't tell me he has a sister! Can you believe it? What else is hiding from me?"

To everyone's surprise, Nicole burst out laughing, throwing her head back in her seat. She was done with her breakfast, but stayed put to hear more about the Whittmore Mansion.

"You're mad because you know nothing about him? Maybe you shouldn't have jumped into a relationship after two weeks of knowing him, don't you think?"

"Nicole, you're being mean." Carolina told her.

"What?" Nicole smiled. "I don't know why are you all so surprised. They've been dating since... Friday. It's been only five days and you're already stressing. You don't know your boyfriend's deepest, darkest secrets within almost three weeks."

Something in Alice's chest felt lighter with those words. She was afraid Nicole was going to say he wasn't a good guy, and this was just the proof. The fear of a "I told you so" lived in her.

"Ignore her, Ali." Carolina said. "You need to talk to him. Tell him he can't hide things from you."

"Or acknowledge the relationship was a mistake from the very beginning and you could've used learning more of each other before."

"Nicole!"

Alice raised a hand to stop her and sat up to look at the blonde.

"No, she's right. I still have much to learn about him and I didn't give enough time to do so." She locked eyes with Nicole. "But you're wrong about being a mistake, because I am in love with him."

Carolina's jaw dropped, and Lucas almost choked on his now soggy cereal. Yet Nicole only rolled her eyes.

"I hope you're kidding. And if you're not, I won't be the one to wipe your tears when he breaks your heart."

"Why are you being so mean today?" Lucas asked in shock.

Carol smirked. "It's Gabriel, haven't you heard? He's catching feelings."

Nicole rolled her eyes and put her dishes in the dishwasher before grabbing her bag and walking to the door.

"You guys, have a good day. I have classes to go to."

The door closed, leaving the three of them alone to discuss Alice's relationship.

🖤🤍🖤

Nicole took the banana muffins out of the oven and displayed them on a platter to put on the vitrine of the cafe.

It was almost empty during those hours, hence why she was all alone during that shift. The cafe was understaffed, and though she didn't mind working alone, the storm was only brewing as the clock ticked closer and closer to six o'clock, when the place got crowded.

"Can I ask you a question?" A girl leaned against the counter, startling her.

She nodded, her work smile appearing on her face. "Yeah, what do you need?"

"I'm looking for a romance book for a friend of mine, but I can't find any."

"The romance section is upstairs, but the exposed books aren't for sale. Chose whatever you want and then I'll get it from the storage."

The girl went upstairs without a "Thank you" and Nicole resumed to clean the counter. There was only a small group of girls in a corner and they were entertained by themselves, so she didn't need to worry.

The bell rang as Alice pushed the door open, dragging Andrew behind her. She took him to a booth on the upper floor, waving at Nicole with little enthusiasm.

"You are going to love the muffins." She said, sitting in front of him.

Andrew twisted his fingers on his lap, looking around the place. It was the first time he entered the place since last time he followed Nicole to campus. He was surprised that Alice would want to be there with Nicole doing the shift.

The blonde showed up by their side with a notepad in hand, not bothering to smile at them, and asked for their order.

Alice asked for two banana muffins and coffee for them while Andrew stared at Nicole. The girl was a mystery to him, a puzzle he wanted to dismantle but be far away from at the same time. It was unnerving. She was unnerving.

Once they were alone again, plus the red head girl still reading the back of romance books on the shelves in the back, Alice felt at ease to talk to him about what had been gnawing her insides since the day before. There was a certain fear of being rejected, as there would always be.

Alice was a people pleaser her entire life. When her dad left and she could no longer impress him, she started trying to impress others. Her challenge was Nicole, who she sought for approval every single second of her existence.

"I'm sorry I left your place like that. I overreacted, and you didn't deserve it."

You made a scandal. He rolled his eyes mentally. It wasn't his intention to upset her, but her reaction the day before had caught him off guard and he didn't like it.

"And I'm sorry I didn't tell you about my sister or my house." He gave in. The whole situation could've been avoided, but the topic had never come up.

"No, it's okay. We're still getting to know each other and I should expect surprises." She held his hand between hers. "There's no need to rush it."

He wasn't sure what to answer, but he didn't have to, as Nicole was back with their order. Two steamy cups of coffee and muffins straight from the oven.

"Bon appétit." She put the tray under her arm and was about to go downstairs when the girl called her to help her pick a book.

"As I was saying." Alice continued to get his attention. "I really want this relationship to work."

"Yeah, me too." He had a bite of the muffin.

"I know my friends aren't easy and they can seem like a threat, but they're just getting to know you."

Andrew frowned. Her friends weren't as bad as she always painted them. He had hung out with the boys once in a while; mostly with Miguel. The only time he could complain about them was when Nicole approached him before French class, but she wasn't a problem. After all, she never talked to him.

"I like your friends." He told her.

"You're just saying that because you don't have anyone in here besides them."

He shook his head. She should know that he didn't want to make a life there, only graduating. His friends were back in New York and they would still be there when he came back.

"I'm serious. I like them."

Alice smiled and tightened her grasp on his hand.

"That's great because... I love you, Andrew."

He stared at her, and suddenly the whole place was silent. The girls laugh downstairs was muffled in his mind and only her words resonated.

Even Nicole and the redhead were quiet, looking at them. Nicole had been afraid she would do it, and she really did.

"Andy?" she nudged him. "Say something."

Love? His brain was glitching. He had never heard that word directed at him before.

"You... love me?" He repeated.

"Yes. That's what I just said." She giggled, unsure. "You're pale. Are you feeling okay?"

His face was drained of colour. No matter how many times he repeated the words in his head, they still made no sense. What was he supposed to say now?

"Andy? You're scaring me."

"I-uh... I'm sorry. I can't tell you what you want to hear."

It was her turn to be speechless. Everything was going so well, so why didn't he just say it back? They made up after a stupid fight. Now they were supposed to kiss and be done with it. Yet, Alice's daydreaming didn't match the reality.

"Look, Ali, I-"

"Don't bother." She got up. "I really thought you were the one. We're done."

He opened his mouth to object, but nothing came out. He just stared at her leaving, as Nicole and the girl did, far from enjoying the show. Although he hated himself for hurting Alice, the nausea was fading.

She hadn't even touched her food.

"That was... something." The girl said.

Andrew stared at both of them and sighed. He could hear all the previous threats.

"Are you going to kill me and throw me into the nearest river?" He looked at Nicole.

The strange thing was that she didn't even look mad.

"No. It's her fault she pushed you. I knew you two would never work out." She sighed. "Can I have her muffin?"

Yo!

I'm losing followers but I'm pretty sure it ain't because of Alice. Though she is being a bitch.

How are we feeling abt her? Honestly I hate her rn but I never was a big fan to begin with... she'll get better though. No one can evolve if they're perfect in the beginning right?

I wanted to write this break up so much! I hope it doesn't feel flat, I wanted them to break up, but I didn't want to actually write it ＞︿＜

Can you spam the comments so I know if you're guys are hating or if I'm good? I need feedback. Pretty please with a cherry on top!

Thank you for reading ;)