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OLIVER FLETCHER

PAST
DECEMBER 2018

I hated essays, I hated theory based projects. My intelligence lies within creativity, not writing a bunch of words down onto a page when I had no idea what to write, reusing the same fifty words over and over.

My eyes glance over at the clock, it was late and I was still at the library. I refused to leave until this essay was finished considering it was due in two days. Needing a whole day to edit and make amendments. I desperately needed to finish it today.

Grazing my fingers across my keyboard on my laptop gingerly, glancing out the window at the black sky. The library floor was dead, people packing up to go home and to sleep. Jealousy riding up in my body when I realised I was the only one left here at nine o'clock at night.

And I still had at least a thousand more words to go. Ready to gauge out my eyes and apply for extenuating circumstances for having no eyeballs.

Cursing to myself, I was procrastinating even now. Fuck.

My phone buzzes next to my laptop and I reach to look at the screen.

Max

You not home?

Oliver

No, I'm at the library. I'm about to commit.

Max

It's late, you should take a break

Oliver

I can't:( this essay is defeating me.

My eyes stare back at the screen for a few moments, Max doesn't reply and I drop my phone back onto the table with a thud. A deep sigh escaping my lips as I focus my eyes back onto the screen in front of me.

The words jumbling into unreadable sentences, I groan aloud and rest my elbows onto the desk. Pressing my hands to the edge of my head, feeling defeated.

A hand is pressed to my shoulder causing me to jump out of my skin, not even hearing footsteps approach me.

My head whips around to Max who stands with a grand smile across his face. "Fuck," I mumble. "Don't do that."

"I'm sorry," Max continues to smile as he plonks himself down onto the chair beside me.

"What are you doing here?" I ask.

"Wanted to see you," he says softly. "I also brought snacks."

"Oh my God," I rush. "Are you joking?"

"Nope," he shakes his head, shrugging off his backpack and unzipping the hem.

He throws a packet of sensations and a kinder bueno in my direction, my stomach growling loudly at the sight. "You're the best," I tell him with a wide smile. "But I can't eat these." I say as I point towards the chocolate bar.

"Why?" Max's eyes frown towards me.

"I'm allergic to nuts," I say as I slide it back over to him. "That shit might kill me."

"Oh," he says as he snaps it back instantly. "I had no idea, sorry."

I shrug towards him. "It's okay, the crisps will do. Thank you."

"Thought you're going to need the energy if you've got an essay to bash out." He says as he drops his hand down onto the table, his rings clinging against the wood.

My hand reaches over to latch onto his, pulling him closer to me. His eyes watch me closely as he leans up from the chair and our faces are level. "Thank you," I whisper against him before pressing my lips to his.

He catches the back of my neck and kisses me deeper, his mouth opening my lips and biting down gently. A breath escapes from the back of my throat as he angles his head to kiss me deeper.

"Max," I pant against him, twisting my head back to my laptop.

Max's lips attach themselves to my neck instead, my skin burning up from his touch.

"Max please, I've got to finish this."

He groans against me and clinks our foreheads against each other, his brown eyes hooded as he looks up at me. Neither of us wanted to be in the library right now, it wasn't hard to admit. But uni work came first and he understood that.

My chest heaves out a sigh as I look at him, the most surreal feeling. "You know that I had no idea this would happen between us." I admit slowly. "But I like you Max, I really do."

"When I saw you I knew that I wanted you," he whispers to me, pressing a delicate kiss to the edge of my lips. "And I always get what I want."

PRESENT
FEBRUARY 2021

Jamie went to spend the night at his friends house, leaving me alone in this apartment. I didn't even want to go out after last weeks events, annoyed that Christian even had the audacity to threaten me.

Like I would even want to look in his direction after what he said to me.

Piece of shit.

So I cracked a bottle of wine and sat on the sofa to watch Saturday night TV, flicking between the channels and attempting to find something worthy of my time. But realistically, I wasn't going anywhere so I would have to make do.

After my first bottle of wine I trudge to the fridge to grab another, something to help entertain me for the rest of the night. When I plonk myself back down onto the sofa my phone lights up from the coffee table.

My eyesight was slightly blurry so I bring it up to my eyes to read.

Max

Please can we talk, I know you're angry and you're upset with me but please just hear me out. I want to explain and I want to apologise. Oliver, I am begging you, please just let me explain. This is killing me and I can't bear it anymore.

My eyes study the message for over ten minutes, bile rising up in my throat at the sight of his name. Considering launching my phone across the room and never having to hear from him again but at the same time, I wanted to reply. I wanted to vent, I wanted him to feel my anger.

Locking my phone so I don't say anything rash, giving myself time to process what to say, how to say it.

Raising the second bottle of wine up to my lips, not even bothering to pour it into a glass anymore. I needed it on standby continuously. For comfort and support.

My body sways slightly as I swing my legs over the sofa and attempt to stand, far too drunk than I expected to be.

So I bring my phone up to my face and click the call button next to Max's name, listening to the dialing tone as it begins to ring.

The phone cuts and then I hear, "Oliver."

Fuck, I wanted to cry already.

"Oliver?" He tries again. "Are you there?"

"I told you not to call me that," I slur as I wipe my nose. "Don't fucking call me that."

"I'm sorry," his voice dips. "Can I see you?"

My lips purse as I stay silent for a few moments, looking up at the ceiling and clenching my eyes shut. "Fuck, this isn't right," I mumble.

"I just want to explain," he tries again, his voice struggling slightly.

"Fine," I snap sharply.

"Really?" His tone instantly perks up. "When?"

My hands move to rub against my eyes. "You can come to mine now." I say before I change my mind.

"Okay," he says suddenly. "I'm on my way."

Cutting off the call before I can say anything further, sudden realisation of what just happened. Pacing up and down my apartment as I peer over at the wine that was sitting on the coffee table, now was not the time to drink more.

But at the same time I couldn't do this sober without having a breakdown.

It doesn't take long until there is a quiet knock at my door, stopping directly in front of the door and shakily taking a breath that I didn't know I was holding.

Taking slow and steady steps up to the door, grasping the lock between my fingers and flicking it open. Letting the door swing slightly, Max was stood with his hands dug into his coat pockets, his eyes down to the floor.

The sound of the lock opening alerts him and he instantly looks up at me, his eyes heavy with purple bags and his hair a mess.

"Hi," he says after a few moments.

"Hi," I respond.

"Can I come in?" He asks and for a moment I study him, his face beginning to blur in my mind.

My head nods and I allow him to take a step in, my eyes watch as he strolls in slowly, glancing around at the flat. Shutting the door behind him and throwing my arms over my chest as he lowers his head to the floor and turns to me.

A few meters of space between us, clear tension in the air. Looking at him hurt, cutting through my arteries painfully.

"I'm sorry," he starts, the words hard for him to say, it was obvious.

"No you're not." I shoot back harshly.

Max's glum eyes find mine, blinking a few times. "I am," he says quietly. "I am so sorry Oliver."

"You hurt me," I say through gritted teeth.

Feeling the wine I had drunk earlier rise up in my body, forcing my body to erupt into a thousand angry pieces.

"I never wanted to do that," he whispers, his lips pulling into a deep frown.

"Well you did," I grit out frustratedly. "You're a fucking asshole. You left me without saying a single word, then you have the fucking audacity to post a picture of you on your instagram like I didn't fucking exist?"

"I know," he shakes his head.

"We loved each other." I shout through my teeth, the words stinging my heart and raising tears to my eyes.

"Nothing has changed Oliver," Max's voice raises suddenly.

I stare back at him in disbelief. A tear rolls down my cheek at his response, breaking everything inside my body.

"No!" I snap harshly, taking steps towards him. "If you loved me you wouldn't have done this to me, you were my fucking life Max. We were amazing together, God, I wanted to fucking marry you!"

Max's jaw clenches slightly as I approach him. "I'm sorry," he repeats.

"Stop saying you're sorry!" I roar at him, my cheeks completely damp. "Fuck," I press my fists into my eyes.

His hand reaches out to grab my wrist but I push him away with all the strength I have. "Don't," I pant out. "Fuck this."

Max takes a step closer to me, his body towering over mine slightly. "Please," he whispers. "Just listen to me."

"What is there to say?!"

He blinks back at me in shock. "Regardless of what you say, you still could have told me why you left. One minute you told me you loved me and the next I couldn't get a hold of you, I had no idea where you were, if something happened to you. I had to find out from Instagram seven months later that you fucked off to Australia! There are no excuses Max, there are none."

"I did what I had to do," he explains but I didn't want to hear it.

My mouth opens to choke back a sob, feeling severely nauseous from the wine and from all the shouting.

"Did you even feel the slightest bit guilty?" I ask him honestly, wiping my nose with the outside of my wrist.

"Of course I did," he grounds out to me. "I thought about you every fucking day since I left, about how you felt, about what I did to us. It haunts me every second, I cannot get away from it."

My eyes clench as I look up at the ceiling, feeling my heart break all over again.

"Oliver please," Max whispers as he slips his hand around the side of my neck, tingling sensations ringing throughout my body at his gentle touch.

I wanted to move away but I couldn't, I had dreamt about his physical affection for over a year and his hand felt so beautiful pressed against my cheek. My eyes flicker open and watch as his warm brown eyes bore into mine, feeling all the emotions I ever felt when I looked into his eyes before. The love, the support, the admiration.

Leaning up onto my tip toes and pressing my lips to his unexpectedly. He catches the back of my neck with my other hand, tasting his sweet mouth on mine as he holds me tightly. Our lips opening widely and our tongues desperately competing for dominance, a kiss of pure hatred and lust and everything in between.

My eyes ping open and I snap back instantly, what the fuck was I doing?

Turning away from him and facing the wall, running my hands through my hair over and over. A variety of emotions floating through my body, my brain feeling completely scrambled.

"You need to leave," I grumble out, not even bearing to face him.

"You didn't give me a chance to explain," he says from behind me.

"I don't care," I snap as I turn sharply towards him.

"You're the one who kissed me," he says, his voice full of hurt.

"It was a mistake and I'm drunk. This is all fucked, so please can you leave?"

Max huffs out a deep breath as he walks towards my front door, he opens the lock and turns back to me. Waiting for me to say something. So I do.

"You really have no idea how much you hurt me," I tell him with narrowed eyes, my lungs burning. "And sometimes I wish I never met you."

His mouth parts at my words, pure sadness washing over his tired eyes. "If that meant that I didn't have to see you hurt like this, then maybe I do too." He tells me before stepping out of my flat and shutting the door behind him.

. . .

Chapters 7-11 are on Patreon now. Link in bio or link is www.Patreon.com/dreammcatcher

Hello my loves! Early update as I'm going on holiday on Friday so I moved all of my updates up a day to fit them in💘

So no update next week, sorry guys!

What did we think of Max and Oliver's encounter???

Can you already tell this is going to be heart wrenching?

See you guys on the next one, Sav x

Insta: SavRose.x
Patreon: dreammcatcher