#a second disclaimer for this post. bc i had a horrifying experience on a fic i posted recently.

[mitternacht]

UU Appreciation Week Day 3: A romance you appreciate

And to nobody's surprise... it's gotta be these guys.

I'm still in genuine awe at how beautifully everything was handled with these 3, and I could really talk for hours and hours about how much I love them but I'll try not to go on for too long!

As always, the rest below the cut for spoilers.

(PS I only want to be positive on this post but please. DNI if you see Leila and Latla as anything but platonic/familial. For my sake and yours. Thanks.)

Where to even start!

I suppose all things must start with Loop 100. Rip's all-consuming, unwavering devotion to saving Leila is something that very immediately endeared me to his character. I will always be the hugest sucker for a guy who will let the entire world burn for the one he loves, that shit means everything to me. He loves Leila so much that he would betray himself and his ideals for the rest of his life if it meant even just a chance at saving her, of seeing her again.

And therein lies the tragedy of him betraying Leila's final wish for him, which was to use his hands to save lives, and to move on from her. But I truly don't think Leila would blame him for doing what he did, even if it would make her feel guilty and sad, because she knows the kind of person Rip is. And Latla has also proven to be willing to do anything to help Rip achieve what's become his singular goal, I don't think there's any part of her that blames him for what he became either. And Rip sees this, and I know he feels so guilty for it regardless.

In Loop 100 I think he also deals with a lot of complicated feelings towards Latla. He very much has always had romantic feelings for her alongside Leila, but after Leila's death I don't think he knows how to handle those feelings. We see the fake, flirtatious mask that he puts on towards the beginning of the loop, that slowly drops over time and we start to see more and more of his true feelings. It might be a punishment for himself to not allow himself to act on his feelings for Latla, despite Leila's prompting for him to do so before her death.

And we have Latla. Latla, Latla, my sweetest girl. Latla, who loved the two most important people to her so much that she was willing to sacrifice every single bit of her own happiness just to ensure theirs. Even before Leila's death, Latla had long resolved to let Rip go despite her feelings for him, because she just wanted to see him and Leila happy. I think a part of her accepted letting Leila go as well, knowing that Leila wouldn't need her taking care of her after her heart surgery. She had fully resigned herself to a life of loneliness, just to ensure the happiness of the two she loved so much.

Of course, Leila and Rip never would've let that happen, but Latla had fully resigned herself to that as she continued distancing herself from them. And it's tragic, because Leila felt the exact same way and was prepared to do the same thing to allow Latla and Rip to be happy without her.

And the fear, Latla must have experienced on the day Leila dies. She was just a sliver away from losing Rip the same day she lost her sister, if she had just been a few seconds too late stopping Rip from taking his own life she would've lost them both the same day. Latla locks down her own feelings once again, and dedicates the rest of her time alive to reuniting Rip with Leila, even though she knows that means she gets left behind. Even though it means she continues to watch Rip make these dangerous strides without her, him never letting her close enough to even attempt to share any part of the burden.

She loves the two of them so much that she doesn't care what happens to her, as long as they get to be happy.

And it's such a tragedy that Rip and Latla are unable to confess the way they feel for each other in Loop 100, not until it's far too late.

And Leilaaaa my other sweetest girl. I can't imagine the frustration and guilt she dealt with, her whole life. She sees how much Latla and Rip sacrifice and give for her, and how frustrated she must be to be so physically unable to do anything in return for either of them. How many times has she tried to push Rip towards Latla, as she realizes they have romantic feelings for each other as well. She had long since accepted her terminal diagnosis, and I think there was a part of her that always knew she wasn't going to make it, deep down. And the fact that she tried so, so hard at the end to comfort the two of them as she was dying, I know she hated so much to take away the hope they'd been carrying for so many years.

And how many times has she convinced herself she wasn't worthy of everything the two of them did for her?

But love isn't something that needs to be earned, and Leila was always just as deserving of Rip's love as Latla was, regardless of physical deeds.

And Loop 101 really delivers on the happiest ending for all of them, and I couldn't have ever asked for anything more.

Rip and Latla finally get to share these romantic feelings they've both been harboring for years, unable to vocalize them until now. Rip finally, finally allows Latla to share his burden in the most physical sense, and Latla finally feels that she's allowed to be a part of Rip's life, that she can let herself back in slowly but surely. And Leila finally gets a chance to fight alongside the two of them, she finally gets a chance to not feel completely helpless, needing to rely on the other two.

And at the end of it all, they're finally able to bring peace to their child selves, to everything they've been working towards since they were young. And Rip didn’t have to choose, and neither Latla or Leila had to give up on their own happiness. Every promise is fulfilled, and it's still the three of them.

Despite everything, it's still the three of them.