HEATHER
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I knew this was a mistake.

But I couldn't tell them why. I couldn't explain that being on a jet with Robin is the worst idea for both of us.

The last few days have been a blur, a chaotic whirlwind of apologies, guilt, and regret. But none of that matters right now.

Here we are, on this jet, flying to Italy for a wedding that's supposed to be my dream wedding. Yet, instead of feeling excited, all I feel is suffocated.

This should be a time of celebration, a time where everything is coming together, but I can't seem to catch my breath. The plane feels too small. The air too thick.

I glance around, taking in the compartment we're all sharing. Javis is passed out in the seat next to me. Even if he denies it, I can smell the beer on his breath-strong, sour, and overpowering. It's barely ten in the morning.

How much did he drink last night? And yet here he is, completely out of it, snoring softly like a careless child. I've just started noticing that he might be an actual drunk.

I shift in my seat, glancing over at Melanie. She's staring intently at her tablet, headphones in, completely tuned out of the world. If anything could tell me she wants to avoid me, it's this. She's the younger sister, and clearly, she's learned to keep to herself when the grown-ups are involved.

That leaves Robin. Of course, it leaves Robin.

I hesitate for a moment before I slide into the seat across from her. I don't expect her to look at me, but I do it anyway. She's staring out the window, the reflection of the sky clouding her face.

She's beautiful, even with the bruises on her neck and the side of her face. It's hard to believe something as simple as a car accident could leave marks like that on her skin. But then again, it's all on me right?

I'm about to speak, but the words stick in my throat. It's always been hard to talk to her, harder now than it ever was. The guilt sits heavy on my chest, weighing me down like a lead vest.

What am I even doing here? Why is this my life now? Why did I have to mess everything up?

"Go away," Robin says flatly, her voice a little too cold for my liking.

I shouldn't have expected any different.

But I don't leave. I don't even move.

"I'd rather stay," I reply, my voice low, but my heart beats painfully in my throat.

"No." She doesn't even look at me. Her gaze is locked on the clouds outside, her fingers tapping impatiently against the armrest.

I want to say something, anything to break this tension. To somehow reach her. To make her understand that I'm not here to hurt her, that I'm sorry. But I don't. Instead, I ask the question that's been swirling in my mind.

"How are you feeling?"

I barely finish the sentence before she shoots me a glare that could kill. Her eyes are fierce, a storm behind them. I know she's about to snap, to throw something sharp and biting my way, but then something shifts. She stops. For a second, she just sits there, her jaw tightening as she looks away.

She's holding back.

She's trying not to snap, but I can feel the fury radiating off of her. It's just below the surface, like an avalanche ready to bury everything in its path. And part of me is terrified that one day, it will.

But right now, we're not alone. I glance at Javis, still passed out next to me, and Melanie, who hasn't even lifted her head from her tablet. I don't think anyone is paying attention, but I don't want to make it worse by pushing too hard. Not yet.

"You can't keep avoiding me forever," I whisper, trying to make my voice gentle, though the tremble in it betrays me. My hands are shaking. "We're practically going to be staying in the same house."

Robin's eyes flicker briefly toward me before she turns away again, her lips pressed into a thin line. She shakes her head, slow and deliberate, like she's disgusted by the thought.

"Watch me," she mutters under her breath, so quietly that I almost wonder if I imagined it. But I didn't. It's there, thick in the air, like a dare.

And that's it. That's all she says.

I don't know what I expected, but it wasn't that. I don't know why it stings so much, why the words cut deeper than I thought they would. Maybe I wanted her to talk to me. Maybe I wanted her to acknowledge me. Maybe I just needed to hear her say something, anything, so I wouldn't feel so fucking alone.

But she doesn't.

So, for the next ten hours, it's silence. Just the hum of the plane's engines, the soft snores of Javis, and the tapping of Melanie's fingers on her tablet.

Robin doesn't speak. I don't speak. It's like we're both trapped in our own private worlds, avoiding each other in the only way we know how.

Every so often, I'll glance at her, but she doesn't notice. I watch the way her body shifts slightly when the plane hits turbulence, how her breath catches when we dip down a little too fast.

But she's not scared. No, it's something else. She's closed off, and I'm too scared to try and open her up again. Not when it feels like I've already broken her.

I want to scream. I want to cry. I want to tell her how badly I've fucked up, how much I wish I could take it all back. How I'd give anything to have a do-over.

But I don't say any of it. I can't. Because she's not ready. And maybe she'll never be.

I want to punch myself in the gut. Maybe, if I had just kept my distance from the start, none of this would have happened.

But no, I had to fall for her. I had to make things more complicated than they ever should've been.

Why am I so obsessed with this woman? Why can't I just leave her alone?

The flight drags on, and I can feel the weight of my own thoughts pressing against my skull, trying to crush me. The time ticks by slowly, every minute feeling like an eternity. Robin doesn't look at me again. And I don't push her anymore.

When the plane finally begins its descent into Italy, I think of how badly I want to get off. How badly I want to just walk away, disappear into the streets, and forget everything. Forget Javis. Forget Melanie. Forget my mom. Forget the wedding.

Forget Robin.

But I can't.

I can't forget her, no matter how much I want to.

And truth be told, it's fucking up my vibe.

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