#brick’s making Bobby miserable again who would have thought!!

[try-set-me-on-fire]

Tagged by @bigfootsmom for tease tidbit tuesday! Had an idea for what I want to do for another of my bad things happen bingo squares and scribbled this opening out on my lunch break at work

“I’ve been doing fine lately.”

“I’m glad. That’s not what I asked.”

Bobby frowns at Frank, who’s sitting as relaxed and neutral as he always is. “You’re a therapist. Don’t you need to know my… current mental state, something like that?”

“Sure,” Frank smiles just the tiniest bit. Bobby doesn’t know if that means he’s succeeded or failed at something. “But I asked: why are you here?”

Bobby likes to flatter himself by thinking he can come across pretty relaxed and neutral himself. He may have grown up surrounded by rapidly decreasing charm in a picture imperfect midwestern family, but none of them ever fully lost the ability to put on a show. “Well, it’s been a hell of a year,” he smiles back, just enough bashfulness, just enough aw shucks, ain’t that just the way.

Frank nods, demeanor unchanged. “It’s almost November,” he points out. “That’s a lot of year. Why did you decide to come in today?”

Bobby’s mother liked to think she could see right through him like this. She’d be impressed by Frank, if she’d approved of therapists. Bobby bites the side of his cheek. That wasn’t really her fault. It was a different time. None of the rest of them would have agreed to going, anyway. “Hell of a week, then.”

Tagging @iinryer @chronicowboy @shortsighted-owl @eddiebabygirldiaz @shitouttabuck @butchdiaz if ya got anything to share!

[athenagrantt]

okay.

summary: buck always hated the whole soulmate bullshit... okay maybe not always but for as long as he learned two things: one, what is his soulmark and two, who his soulmate is, in that particular order or in which buck has the last words his soulmate will ever say to him tattooed on his arm and his soulmate is his best friend. warnings: major character death words: 4,497k a/n: hi! So this is my very first 9-1-1/buddie fic and so I decided it’d be a great idea to introduce myself to y’all with this angsty fic and probably make all of you hate me so… yeah, call me satan and enjoy! lmao (side note if you wanna cry more I recommend to read this while listening to tough by lewis capaldi *wink wink*)                                                                                                        read on ao3

There were so may ways you could find your soulmate Buck couldn’t count them even if he tried. And from what he knew and he’d like to think he knew quite a lot about the topic since he was fascinated by soulmates growing up, most of them were cute, romantic and funny or some kind of combinations of all three. And since everyone around him fit into that equation, you could even say Buck was excited to find that person who was destined to be with him.

Everything shifted when Buck was a little older and found out there actually were not-so-nice and cute ways to find a soulmate and that made Buck anxious about the future. Instead of looking forward to his eighteenth birthday he was dreading it. Every time he thought about it his chest got a little tighter and his breathing quickened.

It wasn’t like he had to take a test or an interview or something like that to determine his way of finding his other half. He’d just know. He’d wake up on his birthday and just know how it’s gonna go so he shouldn’t be this stressed. But he was. And every year his anxiety just kept getting worse because just in three years, two years, one year he w o u l d k n o w.

And yes, he could be overthinking for nothing. He could be just as lucky as other people and have a cute tattoo or see them in his dreams or not age ‘til they meet and it would be awesome but at the same time his brain kept reminding him he could be the unlucky one and most of the time Buck didn’t even want to think what that would mean.

On his birthday, the birthday, Buck woke up feeling different. He couldn’t figure it out right away but he had this gut feeling something’s changed. It was almost like a missing piece of him was finally in its place. He felt whole. And the first thing he did was smile and exhale slowly, calmly. He chuckled quietly not even knowing why and got up from the bed strangely ready to take on another day.

Only when he was putting his clothes on, Buck noticed something on his arm which was strange considering the fact he could barely fall asleep the night before constantly thinking about everything the next day would mean. He took a deep breath and after few seconds finally looked at his arm.

Okay.

Buck furrowed his brows. That was it? Just one word? At first he thought maybe there’s more to come so he spent the entire day constantly checking his arms even though something inside his head was telling him there will not be anything else. And that little voice was right because when Buck went back to bed the same, lonely word was all he saw.

And then a cold, uncomfortable chill run through his entire body and it hit him like a ton of bricks. Something he should’ve think about right away. Instead of overthinking what the tattoo was actually saying he should’ve think about what was the meaning behind it. Because there was one and as soon as Buck unlocked that part, he knew. He knew exactly what that small, innocent okay placed on his wrist meant and for a few seconds that realization knocked the air out of his lungs.

Buck spent the next few hours sitting in the same exact spot on his bed, his breath shaky and shallow, the thumb of his right hand abstinently stroking the inked skin on his left wrist. He felt numb, not able to do anything to break his trance. He noticed he was crying only when the tears started dropping on his hand and still he did nothing to stop them. His vision blurry, the only thing he could see was that same little okay he was staring at for hours.

This was the last thing his soulmate would ever say to him.

He didn’t want to believe it. He wished it was a mistake.

But he knew,

he knew

he knew

he knew it wasn’t.

He knew that little word will, someday, shatter his entire world into pieces. Pieces he won’t be able to glue together. Because his heart will die. Literally. And there’s nothing he can do about it, nothing he can do to prevent it. All he can do is wait and hope.

Okay.

And just as he was lying on the bed, as if all the hurt wasn’t enough, Buck realised another two things. Yes, ‘okay’ will be the only thing his soulmate will ever say to him but he has no idea of knowing which one of them could be in a life-death situation. He just assumed that short word would be said when his soulmate would be dying but who’s to say it won’t be him and ‘okay’ will be literally the last thing he will ever hear? Thinking about it felt like someone was kicking him in the gut.

However Buck didn’t have much time to dwell on that because another thought wanted to be heard – Why just one word? Wasn’t his luck bad enough? How was he supposed to know which ‘okay’ would be the last one? Was he supposed to panic every time someone in his presence said it? Or was he supposed to just know like he knows he definitely was the unluckiest person in the entire world right now?

He had two possible choices - to just live his life to the fullest, knowing he or someone who he will love with everything in him might day and he has no idea when, why or who could it be or to completely close himself off to love, to avoid it like a fire and be miserable his whole life…

But seeing as only few years later Buck was working as a firefighter and chasing fires was literally his job the choice seemed pretty obvious. Somewhere along the way he decided he can’t waste his life. He won’t waste his life. The idea of losing his soulmate, one way or another, still terrified him, but throughout the years he learned to just ignore or silence that part of his brain. Was it healthy for his mental health? God no. But it was working so Buck decided to stick with it.

Then… Buck meet Eddie and again something in him started to change. It was even more confusing than the time thing like this happened on his eighteen birthday. But somehow, somehow Buck knew it had to do with his soulmate. He didn't know how Eddie fit in there but he must’ve.

Because Buck knew.

The idea of Eddie being his soulmate crossed him mind more than once but Eddie told him about Shannon, his w i f e, so no matter what Buck was imagining, Eddie Diaz wasn’t his soulmate and he had to accept it. And he did.

But then Shannon died.

And Eddie’s soulmark was still there.

And Buck was so confused.

Because that wasn’t supposed to happen. When you or your soulmate dies your soulmark dies with you/them. What happens after that? Buck had no idea but what he knew was that the blue eyes Eddie kept on seeing in his dreams should now be gone.

They were not. Even weeks after Shannon’s death Eddie was complaining he still dreamt about them. Buck suggested that maybe it takes time for a soulmark to completely disappear but the thing with Eddie’s soulmark was that it wasn’t disappearing at all. Eddie was convinced that it’s the exact opposite and the eyes he sees are even more visible than before. And at this point Buck was just lost.

When he met Eddie they talked about soulmates. And Eddie explained to him that even though he can see the eyes in his dreams, he’d only know for sure after he kissed his soulmate. He told Buck after he kissed Shannon for the first time he was positive she was it for him and then they had Christopher – whom Buck loves almost as if he was his own son, and despite everything that happened between him and Shannon he thought they would work it out. Unfortunately they didn’t and now Buck wasn’t the only one who was struggling with his soulmate.

He wished both him and Eddie had it as easy as their colleagues from the station.

Like his own sister and Chimney for example. They were both living in a black and white until they kissed and when they did suddenly the world was colourful and beautiful and the two of them were so happy and full of love.

Or Athena and Bobby. Bobby could literally see her in her dreams. He knew exactly who was his soulmate when he laid his eyes on her and when Athena heard his voice, when they first spoke, she knew it was him because the same thing that came out of his mouth was what was tattooed on her forearm.

But Buck’s favourite, to this day were Han and Karen. When they met their hearts started glowing. Han told him, jokingly that they must’ve really been in love because the glow of their hearts wouldn't go away for a whole week. And it only made Buck love their story even more. Mainly because when Buck was younger he wished that would be him someday. Finding love with a glowing heart.

Instead he was cursed with his little okay.

Nothing was okay and it was even less okay after the dinner they had at Bobby and Athena’s place one time Okay, no, the dinner itself was great. But they always were. As long as all of them were together in a room, everything was great. So they talked, they drank, they ate, they laughed and drank some more. A few of them would have a hangover the next day but they were having so much fun that the next morning wasn’t important. Buck wasn’t even mad when his team lost a game of charades – and if it was all Bucks’s fault because he kept staring at his best friend, no one has to know… except everyone knew. The alcohol coursing through his veins did not make him subtle at all.

It was weird. Because up to that very dinner party Buck never thought about Eddie in that way.

That was a lie.

He definitely did think about Eddie in that way but never before let himself think he could have something real with Eddie. He was so fixated on the idea that they weren’t soulmates he never even thought they could still be a thing. Not being someone else’s soulmate never stopped him from a relationship and yet he couldn’t bring himself to try and start something with Eddie. No matter how hard he wanted to pretend he didn’t know what was holding him back, he did. And it was pretty simple and obvious – he didn’t want to risk his friendship with Eddie and his relationship with Christopher. He loved that kid so much sometimes it scared him. The way Chris could chase all his worries away with just one smile was incredible and Buck would rather pine for Eddie from afar then do something that in the long run had the possibility of hurting Chris.

Where were those exact thoughts after the dinner when Eddie suggested they don’t stop the fun now and grab a drink or two at the nearby bar? Buck had no idea but he always had a hard time saying no to Eddie so they did grab a drink or two or four at the bar nearby.

So yeah, the dinner itself was great, it was everything that happened after that might have been the worst or best night in Buck’s life. To this day he’s not sure.

At first the night was going great. They ordered the first round of drinks and sat in the corner booth at the very end of the room where the music was just a little bit quieter and it was easier to hear what they were saying. Also, the light wasn’t that aggressive and when after good twenty minutes Buck thought about it, the whole atmosphere of the booth was awfully romantic. Eddie either didn’t mind it or simply didn’t notice too preoccupied with telling a story about Christopher from that morning.

They spent most of the time like this, talking and laughing, just like best friends do. Buck had even more fun than only hours ago when they were with the rest of the team. Something about it being just the two of them made it even better. And when the voice inside his head would keep on telling him it was because he had feelings for Eddie he’d just push it down, ignoring it before his heart would flutter at the idea.

It was so easy to fall for Eddie Diaz. Buck couldn’t even point to en exact moment he realised he wanted something more than friendship. The idea was silly but it was like Buck’s entire body started vibrating when he was close to him. When it happened the first time, for a second, Buck thought he was dying. He’s never felt anything even close to what he felt that day and it scared and excited him at the same time. Right there and then was the first time Buck thought about Eddie being his soulmate and just by thinking it his body got all warm and tingly and he absolutely loved it. Chimney was the only one who noticed his reaction and for a good week kept making faces at him any time Eddie entered the room which after a month was quite annoying but there was nothing Buck could do about it so he just learned to go with it.

Along the way everyone around him started to notice how taken he was by Eddie… Eddie being the exception. Buck was almost amazed by how oblivious his best friend was. Whenever Han or Chim or even Booby would say something to embarrass Buck in front of him he completely shrugged it off and didn’t give it a second thought. Sometimes Buck was curious what he’d have to do for Eddie to get the idea.

Like what if he were to casually take Eddie’s hand in the middle of his story? Without any explanation. Just hold it, maybe intertwined their fingers together and listen to the story like nothing happened. Would that be enough for Eddie to stop and question what was going on? Suddenly Buck really wanted to know and-

“Hey, man you there? You seemed kinda off.” Eddie’s voice brought him back from daydreaming.

“Yeah, sorry. Spaced out a little.” Buck chuckled.

“Are you calling me boring, Buckley?” A challenging smile on Eddie’s lips.

Buck wanted to kiss those lips.

“I’m not saying Chris would told this story better but...” He trailed off, teasing.

“Wow.” Eddie sighed, trying to look offended but failing.

Buck knew he should’ve stop drinking if he wanted to finish the night without embarrassing himself but at this point in his life he was also pretty good at ignoring his thoughts so that’s what he did and moments later was ordering another round.

He had no idea what happened in that short period of time he was gone but when he was back in the booth he had this feeling that the mood has changed. Something shifted in that little world Eddie and him were immersed for the last two hours. He didn’t know what but when Eddie emptied almost half of his drink at once he knew something definitely happened.

And then before he even had the chance to ask, Eddie’s face was so close to his, Buck could probably count his eyelashes if wasn’t as surprised as she was.

And then they were kissing. And Buck’s head was spinning. And Eddie’s hands were on his neck pulling him even closer. And he let him. And Buck himself grabbed Eddie’s shirt in his hands. And an embarrassingly loud groan escaped his lips. And he could feel Eddie smiling. And Buck hated how much he loved it. But they were kissing so it didn’t matter. Because E d d i e k i s s e d h i m.

Buck had to physically, gently push Eddie away because as much as he absolutely loved feeling his lips on his own, suddenly he knew and yet again he absolutely hated his life.

Okay.

Right after Buck broke the kiss, he could see how confused Eddie was. And he had every right to because Buck did kiss him back. And they both knew what just happened and what that meant for them but for some reason, after a moment of complete silence between them Eddie felt the need to voice the fact. “You’re my soulmate.” He said quietly and Buck was surprised he could actually hear him. “We’re soulmates.” Eddie said again with a smile on his face and Buck wanted to cry.

Okay.

He was fine with Eddie not knowing Buck had feelings for him. It was easier. It was safer. But Eddie kissed him and Buck kissed him back. And now the idea he was so quick to dismiss so many time before turned out to be true and Buck hated it. Because it meant he would lose Eddie. Someday in the hopefully long ass future he will definitely loose his best friend. One of them will die leaving the other one. No one said it had to be soon but Buck couldn’t let himself get his hopes up.

Okay. Okay. Okay.

It didn’t take long for Eddie to decipher Buck’s reaction. He knew how Buck felt about his soulmark and it was safe to say he hated it. It wasn’t a secret. And Buck always said he’s rather never find them rather than go through loosing essentially a part of himself. So knowing that, Eddie couldn’t even be mad. He could only imagine how hard it was for Buck to know the last thing Eddie would say to him. Now that he knew Buck was his soulmate he wasn’t sure himself how he felt about the idea but he knew he wouldn’t want anyone else as his soulmate.

“Buck.” Eddie said, his hand firmly gripping Buck’s shoulder. “Look at me.” He asked and took a deep breath before continuing. “It’s okay.”

“Eddie.” Buck’s breath hitched and when nothing happened he exhaled sharply and pulled Eddie in for a tight hug. “You’re okay.”

“I’m fine. I’m okay. We’re okay.” Eddie assured him and Buck hated how his heart stopped for a second every time Eddie said that word.

“Please never say ‘okay’ to me ever again.”

Buck was so serious it almost gave Eddie chills but he rolled his eyes to somehow loosen up the tense moment. “Buck. Don’t be ridiculous.” He shook his head, grabbing Buck’s hand. “Do you really believe that me not saying the word will change anything?”

“I hope so.” Buck sighed. “Eddie, I can’t lose you.” He admitted eventually and it nearly broke Eddie’s heart to hear how defeated he sounded. And Eddie wanted to assure him, he won’t but he couldn’t say that. He couldn’t promise something like that and he didn’t want to lie to Buck. “The only thing we can do is to live to the fullest and enjoy it while it lasts, okay?” Eddie said, adding the word Buck hated on purpose just to make his point.

And Buck knew Eddie was right. He couldn’t live in fear because he wouldn’t be living at all. And now that he knew Eddie was his soulmate Buck wanted so many things out of life. So just like he did all those years ago, when he found that little okay on his wrist, he decided to let that fear of losing Eddie motivate him to live his life like every day was the last one rather than stop living at all. And being a firefighter sure did help him understand how fragile life was, on a daily basis.

Even before he knew Eddie’s his soulmate both of them had a few close calls and right there one of them could’ve died and when Buck thinks about it now it would be so much worse. The situation he is now isn’t the best but it always could be worse. If Eddie were to die and Buck would find out they were soulmates before he had any chance to do anything about it he’s sure he’d die right beside him because of how broken his heart would be. At least now they had a chance to be together. No matter how long.

Months have passed and both of them were still happy and most importantly healthy. Of course, there were times one of them would be closer to the other side that they’d prefer, knowing the circumstances but at the end they were okay.

Until they weren’t.

The day started almost like any other. It was better because exactly a year ago they were in a bar where they discovered they’re soulmates. A year ago they got together and started their lives as a couple.

An anniversary.

Time really flies when you’re happy and in love. Buck could not believe it has been a year already. It was, hands down, the best year of his life. A year filled with nothing but the kind of love that consumes you entirely. So he insisted they go out and celebrate together. All three of them. Because it wouldn’t be the same without Christopher. Buck made a reservation at their favourite restaurant and was so excited he nearly started counting down the hours.

Much to all his friends’ joy he didn’t have the time to actually do it since the day was just hectic. Every call was more intense than the previous one and the last one of the day was the actual worst one in every meaning imaginable.

There was a man threatening a woman with a gun. He was drunk and Buck would say crazy. When they got there Bobby, Eddie and him went inside. Bobby tried to talk the man down, tried to reason with him but to no avail. It seemed like the man couldn’t even hear him like all this anger bubbling inside him made him deaf. Which was ridiculous of course, but Buck really didn’t know how else to describe it.

And everything that happened after Bobby stopped talking and addressed Buck and Eddie happened so quickly Buck didn’t even know what he was doing after he was in the middle of throwing himself at the captain. All he remembered was the man pointing his gun at Bobby and pulling the trigger. When both of them landed on the ground everyone present realised the gun did not fire. Buck let himself take a deep shaky breath before he looked back at the scene and oh how he wished he didn’t. Because when he turned his head around, standing up from the ground he saw Eddie charging at the man who now knew that now there was nothing to lose. He attempted to kill Bobby so he might as well carry on with his plan.

Before Eddie managed to reach him, the man quickly reload the gun and fired.

One.

Two.

Three.

Then Eddie landed on the ground, nothing but pure shock on his face. The only thing Buck could hear was the beating of his own heart. He was on his knees when Eddie fall down and now wasn’t able to pull himself up. Completely ignoring the very real chance of being shot himself he stumbled to where Eddie was lying in a pool of his blood, hand clutching his chest.

Buck was numb.

He had no idea what was happening around him. The only thing important to him was Eddie and when he reached him he took his hand in his. Tears were streaming down his face but he didn’t even noticed.

Okay. Okay. Okay.

“They’re almost gone.” Eddie mumbled, looking at Buck.

“What?” Buck asked even though he had a pretty good idea what Eddie was talking about. But this time, this time Buck let himself hope.

“Your eyes.” Eddie smiled, his eyes closing just for a second.

Buck’s wrist started to sting.

Okay.

Okay.

Okay.

“Eddie. No.” Buck’s voice broke and his heart was beating so fast. “You can’t-” He couldn’t finish. He didn’t want to finish. “Think about Christopher. You can’t leave Christopher.” He cried. “You can’t leave me.” Eddie’s grip on his hand was so weak it made Buck sick. “We have an anniversary dinner to go to.” He tried, he tried to be okay. “Eddie please.”

“I know you’ll take good care of him Buck. There’s nobody in this world that I trust with him more than you, remember?” Buck could barely hear him and the pain in his wrist was increasing with every second yet it still was nothing in comparison to the pain of hi dying heart.

Okay.

“Eddie-” He wanted to say so many things but the lump in his throat wouldn’t let him.

“I know.” Eddie placed his hand on Buck’s cheek. “I love you, too.”

Buck couldn’t take it any more. Still holding Eddie’s hand, he laid his head on his chest and regretted it as soon as he heard how slow and weak Eddie’s heartbeat was. How he wished it was just a very very bad dream or some sick joke. How was he supposed to live his life now?

“Hey, look at me.” He obeyed but when he looked in Eddie’s eyes he knew exactly what was gonna happen and if it was possible, he just cried harder.

Okay.

“Don’t say it. Eddie I am begging you, please don’t say it.” Buck was shaking his head frantically. His whole body was shaking and he wasn’t sure if it ever stop. “You’re gonna be fine. I love you. So much. You’re gonna be fine, okay?” He didn't even noticed what he said until Eddie smiled at him with all the love he had for Buck in his eyes.

“Okay.” Eddie exhaled and tugged at Buck’s hand. He couldn’t see anything through the tears but he leaned down and gently pressed his lips to Eddie’s. When he pulled away he was choking on the tears. Still strongly gripping Eddie’s hand he just looked at him before he noticed that his wrist wasn’t hurting any more. The one thing he hated about himself and now the only thing he’d of Eddie was gone and he’d never imagined he’s miss it.

Buck managed to whisper one last ‘I love you’ before he felt a pair of hands pulling him away from his now forever gone soulmate.

And he was far, far away from okay.

[leelee10898]

Back to you: Chapter 24 - Colder Weather

Summary: Leo heads to Cordonia to stop Madeline and hopefully get Aria back.  Liam has a health crisis and Aria discovers what Madeline is up to. Catch up HERE As always all characters belong to Pixelberry studios... Except those created for the story. Rating: Mature Chapter/title inspiration: Colder Wether- Zac Brown band

Tag List: @bobasheebaby @scarlettedragon @alicars @annekebbphotography @speedyoperarascalparty @greyeyedsmile14 @stopforamoment @mind-reader1 @xxrainbowprincessxx @hopefulmoonobject @katurrade @indiacater @bella-ca @blznbaby @blackwidow2721 @liamxs-world @simsvetements @furiousherringoperatortoad @choicesfannatalie @crookedslimecreatorpasta @coldcollectornight08 @laniquelovely @museofbooks @syltti78 @gennesaret

 Leo splashed water on his face, he placed both hands on the sink staring at himself in the mirror of the tiny airplane bathroom. He was tired and run down, dark circles prominent under his bright blue eyes,he looked like shit. His focus was getting to Cordonia and making sure she was ok, he needed to see for himself. He exited the bathroom and sat back in his seat. Leo had been trying all night to reach somebody, anybody, but no one was answering their phone. He couldn’t warn them. He called her number over and over again but it went straight to voicemail each time. Why the hell is nobody answering their damn phones? He looked down at the screen, his thoughts temporarily interrupted by his wallpaper. A photo of he and Aria, the night of the bachelor party. Leo smiling as Aria placed a sweet kiss on his cheek. He stared at that picture until he realized the date. shit, the coronation ball. Damnit, that’s why nobody is answering. He thought to himself. Four more hours until they reached Cordonia.

Liam watched Aria intently, he wanted to make sure she was ok. Praying she was enjoying herself. She had been sleeping a lot, he did not want her to slip into a deep depression. Damn his brother for this. In a perfect world she would want him, but this wasn’t a perfect world, and she loved Leo. “You need to stop staring Liam, people are starting to notice. ” Madeline snapped walking up behind him. “Who fucking cares Madeline” Liam snapped back sitting his glass of scotch down walking across the room to whisper something to Bastian. Anger washed across Madeline’s face as she pulled out the little clear baggie dumping the contents cautiously into his drink, swirling his glass to dissolve the powder. Liam walked back over “Here you are darling.” Madeline cooed handing him the tumbler of scotch. Liam gulped it down in one shot, a smile formed on Madeline’s face that will teach you to speak to me that way she thought to herself.

Aria sat at one of the tables by herself, watching everyone around her having fun. Her best friend came all the way from New York to cheer her up. Granted that may have had a lot to do with the fact that Maxwell had taking a liking to Ellie and vise versa, she watched Ellie laugh as Maxwell spun her around. She caught sight of Hana dancing gracefully with Rashad, she looked so elegant and beautiful. Aria tried her best to put on a brave face but truth be told she was miserable. She missed him terribly, the way he would make jokes about the stuffy older nobles making her desperately try to stiffen back fits of giggles. The way his hand would hold her lower back firmly as they would glide across the dance floor.

 “Ok cut the crap, what is wrong with you? ” Olivia crossed her arms as she sat down next to her. “I’m fine, really.” Aria turned her head away avoiding Olivia’s judgmental stare. “Either you’re going to tell me willingly what happened between you and Leo, or I will force it out of you. ” Olivia threatened. Aria sighed, she knew Olivia wouldn’t let it go. “I seen Madeline kiss Leo Accidentally, his door was cracked open and I peaked in.” Aria blurted out. “Mmhmm, and did Leo lean in? Or put his arms around her as well?” Olivia questioned. “Well, no. Not that I seen.” Aria admitted. “You know Aria, you are a smart girl, usually, but you are being incredibly stupid” Olivias eyes met Arias. “Do you not know how much he loves you? Sure Leo has a reputation, but for as long as I have known him he has never looked at a woman like he looks at you.” “No I guess I never really thought about that. I know he claims to love me, then why kiss Madeline.” Aria tried to argue but she was finding the words hard to find. “Why would he? He wouldn’t Aria. But Madeline, She would kiss him. Think about it.” Olivia grabbed Arias hand. Aria sat back in her chair Fuck she whispered. A smile formed on Olivia’s face “my work is done here.” She patted Arias hand as she got up making her way to Drake. He wouldn’t kiss her, not intentionally. Aria thought to herself. But Madeline Aria shook her head Madeline would kiss him. She should have pushed the door open, she should have given Leo time to react before she ran off and left him. Oh god Leo, the letter, what have I done? Her thoughts consuming her, the sound of Liam’s voice pulled her from her thoughts.

Liam stood in the middle of the floor. Aria stood up and walked to the edge of the carpet. “I would like to thank everyone for coming tonight, I have an announcement to make.” Cough cough “excuse me.” Liam apologized. Lady Aria.“ Liam held his hand forward. Aria smiled and walked forward taking his hand. "I would like to introduce our  newest duchess to court, Duchess Aria Hale of Valtoria.” Liam beams as claps fill the ball room. Aria smiles and curtsies. As the applause dies down Liam continues on with his speech. “ I would also like to make another announcement. ” cough cough cough. Liam clears his throat. “I seem to have something caugh-” cough cough cough. “Liam?” Aria placed her hand on his shoulder in concern. Liam erupts in a fit of coughs and he collapses on the floor.

 “LIAM!” Aria screams as she kneels down next to him, checking for a pulse. Madeline runs over falling onto the floor. “Liam? No no no, nooo, you cant die, no to much, I gave him to much, no.” Madeline panics. Aria turns her head to much? She thinks to herself. Her focus shifts back to Liam, his pulse was erratic. Bastian clears the women from Liam as a team of medics rush in, getting him onto the stretcher rushing him to the Hosptial. 

“Hale! hale what happened?” Drake rushed over to a distraught Aria. “I.. I don’t know he just, he was coughing, and he collapsed.” Aria stammered. “Ari,Ari are you ok?” Ellie ran up wrapping her arms around Aria. “Physically yes. But we need to get to the hospital, Drake, Olivia please. ” Aria begged. “Yeah of course Hale, lets go. ” Drake started towards the door. Aria gave an unsure look between Ellie and Maxwell. “Don’t worry little blossom, I will look after my little petunia.” Maxwell assured her as he wrapped an arm around Ellie. “Hana are you coming?” Aria asked, Hana nodded her head and they met Drake in his truck.

Once at the hospital the group had to wait for Bastian to come and give clearance. “How is he Bastian?” Aria whispered. “He will be ok, hes stable, and he has been asking for you Duchess Aria.” Bastian informed her as he walked them down the long halls of the hospital and into a secluded area. Her heart was in her throat as she opened the door and walked into the room. “Liam?” Aria meekly said as she walked over to Liams side. His eyes lit up, “Aria, you are here. I wanted to make sure you were ok, the last thing I heard was your voice, you were worried.” Liam sat up in the bed. “Of course I was worried Liam, I do care for you. We may not be together but that does not mean I will stop worrying about you. ” Aria chuckled lighthearted. “Yes, I suppose not. ” Liam gave a half laugh before continuing “The Doctors are waiting on some lab results but, I will be released this evening as long as we do not get negative results. ” 

“Thats wonderful news Liam. ” she gave hid hand a reassuring squeeze. A knock came to the door “your Magisty I have your results.” the doctor announced as came into the room, Aria excused herself giving Liam a moment alone. A few minutes the doctor came out to address the group. “ The king will be ok, he was a little dehydrated and had some signs of exhaustion but that was not what bothered us.” “Well, whats wrong doc?” Drake demanded. “You see the king had high amounts of scopolamine in his system.” He continued. “Whats that? scopadolpadoo?” Maxwell tried to pronounce the drug name. “Scopolamine, is a drug that can be used to make people susceptible to persuasion.” The doctor said looking at Maxwell, trying to keep a straight face. “So its a mind control drug.” Olivia blurted out, everyone turned to look at her, their mouths agape. “What? She looked puzzled. "Well,yes scopolamine, or devils breath they call it as well, can be used for mind control. ” “ wait, what did you just call it?” Aria stood up, the name sounding familiar. “Devils breath.” The doctor repeated. As if she were having a vision, the memory of the conversation Aria over heard Madeline and the strange man had in the hotel that day. You’ll have the devils breath tomorrow. It hit her like a ton of bricks, It was Madeline, she was the cause of Liam’s black outs, of his odd behavior, Madeline was poisoning him. She needed proof if she was going to take her down. “Hey Drake, I need a favor?”

**********

“Only one more hour.” Leo bounces his leg in anticipation. He had been sitting in that damn seat for hours, agonizing over everything that could go wrong. He just needed to get there. He cruised the web, looking for any recent breaking news from Cordinia each search returning no information, no news is good news he tried to level with himself.

“I just need you to keep watch Drake. Do you think you can do that without alerting half the palace?” Aria huffed as she picked the lock with a bobby pin from her hair. The door clicked and popped open. “Well I’ll be damned. Remind me to ask you how you learned how to pick a lock later on Hale.” Drake chuckled in astonishment. Aria crept into the dimly lit room, praying Madeline was not there. Madeline disappeared from the hospital as soon as the doctor gave the news Liam had been poisoned. Aria dug through drawers, boxes and bags and found nothing. Defeated she stood to leave, her foot got caught on the leg of a chair sending her into the vanity, her hands hit the top with a loud smack as a hidden compartment popped open. Aria could not believe her eyes. Inside were 5 bags filled with a white substance. “DRAKE” She called out, Drake sticks his head in the door “you ok Hale?” “Yeah drake, call Bastian, I found it.” Aria whispers. She had her, she finally got the evidence to take Madeline down. Aria couldn’t help but smile, a victory finally, if she only knew this was the short game she had played, what Madeline had in store for them next nobody would be prepared for.