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lonerwolff · 3 days ago

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𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐋 ⌇𝑙𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑖𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑤𝑠

you can also read this story on @lonerwolff on wp and ao3 !

chapter 15: tears and petals

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"LOTTIE?" COACH BEN'S voice pulled her out of her thoughts, making her jump a little. She looked up, startled. Jackie, who had been completely focused on his words, turned her head sharply at the sound of Lottie's name. Her smile immediately vanished, replaced by a tense frown as her eyes landed on her, then quickly scanned the area, searching for someone else.

"Uhh..Where's Daisy?" Coach Ben asked, his brow furrowing with a hint of worry, his eyes looking past Lottie, expecting to see a certain blonde right behind her. "You two were supposed to get water together."

"She just...left," Lottie shrugged, trying to sound like it was no big deal, like Daisy had simply decided she didn't want to carry water anymore. She glared at Jackie, who was staring at her like she had committed some sort of crime.

Jackie knew that Daisy didn't just leave. She could bet on the fact that something had happened. Daisy wouldn't just leave out of nowhere for no reason. "I don't believe that." Jackie stood up, her chin high. "What did you tell her, Lottie?" She crossed her arms over her chest, taking a few steps closer to the culprit.

"I didn't tell her anything," Lottie mumbled, her voice low. "We just... talked. And she left. That's all."

"Liar." Jackie glared, her arms tightening across her chest.

"Whatever. It's none of your business, Jackie," Lottie snapped, clutching her hand into a fist.

"When it affects my team, it is absolutely my business!" Jackie retorted, drawing Coach Ben's full attention. He stood up slowly from the log, watching them with growing alarm. "And when you make my friend upset, it's definitely my business, Lottie. You think you can just come here and mess with people's heads? With Daisy's head? She worried about you, Lottie!"

Lottie narrowed her lips at that. "Oh, so now she comes to you to talk?" The information that Daisy was worried about her going completely over her head.

"Enough, both of you." Coach Ben limped closer to them before the argument could escalate further. "This isn't the time nor the place."

Jackie bit the inside of her cheek and turned her glare away, jaw tight, but she didn't back down. She muttered under her breath, "Someone should go find her."

"I'll go," Lottie said quickly, too quickly. She didn't know if it was because she wanted to find Daisy or because she wanted to find Daisy before Jackie. Maybe a little bit of both.

Jackie whipped her head around. "Absolutely not. You're the last person she probably wants to see right now." Her voice was laced with pure venom, a clear sign of her mistrust. She took a step forward, as if to physically block Lottie from going. "You'll just make things worse. She needs someone who actually cares, not someone who's going to mess with her head again."

Lottie flinched like she'd been slapped. The words hit harder than she expected, mostly because a small part of her wondered if Jackie was right. But she didn't let it show. Instead, she straightened her back and met Jackie's glare with one of her own. "Fuck you, Jackie," she spat. "You're acting like you know me or her better than I do. You don't know shit about what happened." Lottie stepped forward, fists clenched at her sides.

"Well, I—" Jackie started, but was quickly interrupted by the coach, who had been ignored for this whole time.

Coach Ben raised one of his hands, exasperated. "That's enough! Jesus, you two—Jackie will go find her."

Jackie pushed her chest out, full of pride, looking around like she had just won the lottery. Lottie, on the other hand, didn't look as proud. Her jaw was tight, and she looked ready to argue, but Coach Ben's stern gaze stopped her.

"And Lottie," Coach Ben said, his voice a little softer but still firm, "you stay here. We need to talk."

Lottie's eyes flickered to the ground, then back up to Jackie's retreating figure, who was already strutting off into the trees. A heavy silence fell between Lottie and Coach Ben. Lottie hugged herself, suddenly feeling cold even though the sun was still warm on her skin.

Coach Ben sighed, rubbing his temples. "What happened, Lottie?" he asked, his voice tired. "What did you say to Daisy?"

Lottie kept her eyes fixed on the spot where Jackie had vanished. "Nothing," she mumbled again, her voice barely a whisper. "Just...stuff."

Coach Ben took a step closer. "Lottie, Daisy is your friend. We're all we have out here. We need to look out for each other. If something you said upset her, you need to tell me."

Lottie bit her lip. She could still feel the sting of Jackie's words, the idea that she had messed with Daisy's head. And the truth was, she felt a little bad. She knew Daisy was sensitive. But she also felt a rush of anger at how Jackie had acted, like she was the only one who cared.

She finally looked up at Coach Ben, her eyes wide and a little lost. "I just...I don't know. I pushed her away and..I-I fucked up." Her voice cracked slightly at the last sentence, looking around with unshed tears. "I'm just scared...I don't want to hurt her."

Coach Ben looked at Lottie, and the anger seemed to drain from his face, replaced by a deep sadness. He sat back down on the log, patting the spot next to him. "Come here, Lottie," he said softly.

Lottie hesitated for a moment, then slowly walked over and sank onto the log beside him, pulling her knees up to her chest, still not looking at him directly.

"We're all scared, Lottie," Coach Ben said, his voice gentle. He stared out into the trees, his gaze distant. "Every single one of us. And sometimes, when we're scared, we lash out. We say things we don't mean, or we push people away, even the ones we care about the most."

He turned to look at her then, his eyes kind. "What did you say to Daisy that made you think you hurt her?"

Lottie gulped, a tear finally escaping and tracing a path down her cheek. Her voice was rough when she finally spoke in a low mumble. "I told her that she doesn't know what...'difficult' is. That she lives in a world where everything makes sense, where her problems are...small things like..being late for church or getting good grades." She took a shaky breath, the memory of her words to Daisy making her stomach churn. "I told her... she has no idea what's inside my head. W-What I've seen, what I feel. That she couldn't possibly know how 'complex' things are." Lottie squeezed her eyes shut. "She was trying to help, Coach. She was asking if I was okay, and I just... I threw it back in her face. Like she couldn't understand. Like her feelings didn't matter." Lottie's voice cracked. "And then...I just told her she didn't want to know, and she left. She just... left her bucket and walked away." She opened her eyes, looking truly miserable. "I made her feel stupid, Coach. Like her trying to be a good friend wasn't enough. And then I basically told her to get lost."

Coach Ben listened, his expression serious. He didn't interrupt, just let her get it all out. When she finished, he took a moment before speaking. "Lottie, it's clear you're going through something really tough right now, but she's worried about you." He paused. "And I get it, you pushed her away because you're trying to deal with your own problems, or...I don't know. But Daisy isn't a mind reader—I presume— so, you need to talk to her instead of pushing her away."

"So, what do I do?" Lottie whispered, her voice still thick with tears. "How do I fix this?"

Coach Ben gave her a small, sad smile. "For now, we let Jackie find her. Daisy needs a moment to breathe. And when she comes back, or when you see her next... you tell her you're sorry. Not just for what you said, but for how you made her feel. And you tell her you do appreciate her trying to help. Even if you don't feel it, you tell her. Because she needs to hear it."

"DAISY!" JACKIE CALLED OUT as she jogged through the woods, but no answer was received. Her footsteps slowed when she saw the familiar flash of blonde hair—Daisy, sitting cross-legged in the grass, head bent and hands busy with something in her lap. She was threading wildflowers together, purples and yellows, tying their stems into one another. A crown was beginning to take shape in her hands.

Jackie took a step closer, and that's when she noticed the faint shimmer on Daisy's cheeks. Tears. "Hey," Jackie said softly, not wanting to startle her.

Daosy sniffed quietly and quickly wiped at her face with the back of her hand before looking up. "Oh. Hey"

"I was looking for you." Jackie said, walking closer to her, careful not to step on any of the flowers that hadn't been picked yet.

"I figured," Daisy mumbled, going back to her flower crown, her fingers moving slower now. "Let me guess. Lottie sent you?"

Jackie rolled her eyes. "Nope. She didn't even want me to come after you, actually. Plus, she didn't want to come after you in the first place"

The blonde paused, hands stilling around one of the stems, her lips pressing into a tight-line. "She really didn't want to?" Daisy's voice was soft, almost a whisper, as if she couldn't quite believe it. She didn't look up, her gaze fixed on the half-finished crown in her lap.

Jackie sighed and knelt in the grass beside her, already knowing that she was going to regret it later. "Yeah. plus me and coach thought you might want a break from her...And whatever that was."

Daisy gave a small nod, eyes still glued to the crown. Jackie didn't speak for a moment, she just watched Daisy, how her fingers trembled slightly now as she resumed intertwining the stems together. "She said some stuff that..." Her voice small. "Made me feel like I didn't...matter. Or like, what I feel isn't real because I haven't seen— or felt what she did."

"Oh that's bullshit! You matter, Daisy. You matter to a lot of people. And you matter to me." Jackie reached out, her fingers gently covering Daisy's hand, stilling its work on the flower crown. Daisy flinched slightly at the touch, but she didn't pull away. Her eyes, still a bit red around the edges, finally lifted from the flowers and met Jackie's.

There was a moment of silence, where just the sounds of the forest and the soft sniffles of the blonde could be heard. Jackie's thumb instinctively stroked the back of Daisy's hand, a small, comforting motion. Daisy's breath hitched, and her gaze dropped from Jackie's eyes to her lips, lingering there for just a second. Jackie felt a sudden warmth spread through her, a strange flutter in her stomach she hadn't expected.

"Your feelings are real, Daisy. Don't let anyone tell you they're not." Jackie said, her voice dropping to a softer, almost husky tone.

Daisy looked back up at Jackie, her eyes wide and vulnerable. The faint shimmer of tears was still there, but now there was something else too, a flicker of something new, something that made Jackie's heart beat a little faster. Daisy's lips parted slightly, and Jackie found her own gaze drawn to them, feeling a pull between them.

"You...You really think so?" Daisy whispered, her voice fragile.

"I know so," Jackie replied, her grip on Daisy's hand tightening ever so slightly. She leaned in just a fraction, her eyes searching Daisy's, looking for any sign of doubt. The air between them felt thick, and she could feel Daisy's warm breath on her face. and the scent of flowers filling her nostrils.

Daisy's eyes dropped again, this time to their joined hands, then slowly back up to Jackie's eyes. A faint blush crept onto Daisy's cheeks, and Jackie felt a similar warmth rising in her own face. "Thanks, Jackie," Daisy said, her voice so soft it was almost lost in the rustle of the leaves. She didn't pull her hand away; In fact, her fingers subtly intertwined with the other girl's.

Slowly, almost without thinking, Jackie leaned in a little more, and Daisy's breath hitched again. Their eyes locked, and Jackie saw a bit of hesitation there, but in that moment, she didn't really care, even though they both knew that they would regret it later on.

The blonde's gaze flickered down to Jackie's lips once more, and this time, Jackie didn't fight it back.

She closed the small distance between them, their lips meeting softly.

It was a gentle kiss, tasting faintly of the salty tears that still clung to Daisy's cheeks and the sweet, earthy scent of the flowers around them. Jackie felt the delicate pressure of Daisy's lips, so soft and obidient under hers. Jackie deepened the kiss just a fraction, and Daisy leaned into her, her body relaxing into the contact. She could feel the wetness of a few more tears as they dropped on her lips as the kiss went on.

When they finally broke apart, it was only by an inch or two, just enough to breathe. Daisy's eyes were still closed for a moment, then slowly fluttered open, looking a bit dazed. Her cheeks were flushed a deep red, and her lips, slightly parted, looked even more inviting.

Jackie stared at her, a little breathless. She could still feel the blonde's lips on hers, leaving a tingling sensation in her whole body. Daisy looked at her, a shy, flustered smile playing on her lips.

"Wow," Daisy whispered, her voice barely there, a soft exhalation of breath.

Jackie couldn't help but smile back, a genuine smile that reached her eyes. "Yeah," she agreed, her voice a bit raspy. "Wow."

author's note⭑.ᐟ kinda short, plus, this feels rushed 😭 (but frostie will die so..) oh and no adult timeline because i don't know what to do😭 and in the meanwhile im also working on a stranger things fic because i don't know, i just really love stranger things 💔

#lottie matthews x reader #yellowjackets #yellowjackets fanfic #lottie yellowjackets #oc: daisy duval #fanfiction #original character #fanfic #slow burn #lottie matthews #lottie matthews fanfic #courtney eaton #. ݁₊ ⊹𝐯𝒊𝒄 𝒘𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒆𝒔.ᐟ𝜗𝜚 #writer #𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐋 ⌇𝑙𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑖𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑤𝑠 #jackie taylor x reader #jackie taylor #jackie yellowjackets #daisy duval x jackie taylor

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lonerwolff · 6 days ago

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𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐋 ⌇𝑙𝑜𝑡𝑡𝑖𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑤𝑠

you can also read this story on @lonerwolff on wp and ao3 !

chapter 14: difficult?

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author's note⭑.ᐟ: I'm a little rusty, so this chapter sucks, I'm sorry😔

DAISY LOVED THE early mornings the most.

The heat of the sun crawling on her skin, the way the light painted everything, including her, in gold.

She closed her eyes for a moment, letting the hot breeze move through her hair, lifting a few strands of it.

It reminded her of the summers back home, long before she even started to play soccer.

She used to wake up before her parents on Sundays, putting on a still-wrinkled dress, and sneak outside barefoot in the garden behind their house. All kinds of flowers were growing there, and she'd sit there on the grass with her sketchbook, drawing everything that nature had to offer. Her sketches for an eleven year old weren't the best, but they still weren't horrible.

When her mother would see her with grass stains on her legs and dress, her smile would immediately turn into the sort of disappointed frown that Daisy had learned to recognize long before she could even name it.

Her mother would immediately tell her to go change, but sometimes, when they were already running late for church and there wasn't enough time for Daisy to change—or simply not another neat dress for her to wear— she'd have to leave with that stained dress, resulting in getting some dirty looks by some people when she'd sit at the pews.

Daisy wouldn't notice, but her mother surely did, and when one of the old ladies there talked to Carol after the prayer ended—basically scolding her for letting her daughter leave her house like that— Daisy's mother flushed in embarrassment, feeling extremely ashamed, causing her to never make the same mistake again.

Daisy, on the other hand, wasn't ashamed. She didn't even know that people were judging her. She thought that nobody would really care if she had a couple of almost invisible grass stains on her dress. That nobody would care because it was obvious—at least to her— that she had fun that morning.

And still, a bunch of years later, she still sat barefoot on the grass, her foot resting in the water.

Her diary lay open across her lap, half-scribbled in. At first, she started to write everything that came to her mind, but then she got distracted by nature, and so she started to draw instead of writing.

She couldn't decide on what to do on that page, which was obvious by the fact that it had a bunch of flower drawings on it.

Daisy looked at it for a while, resting her chin on her knee. The pencil was still in her hand, but she wasn't drawing anymore, just staring. Her thoughts wondering off again.

She started to think about Lottie again, like she had been doing for hours—or rather, days at that point.

Every time her mind drifted, it circled back to the candle-lit corridor, to Lottie's hand on her hip, to the intense, almost unreadable look in her eyes. And that question : "Do you...think I'm crazy?" Why would she even ask her that?

Daisy felt a familiar flush creep up her neck at the memory, and she instinctively shook her head and blinked a couple of times, as if the thoughts would disappear if she'd done that. She pressed her lips together, wishing she could just doodle away the confusion swirling in her head.

A rustle in the bushes suddenly pulled her out of her thoughts, making her turn around.

Javi revealed himself from the leaves, rubbing sleep from his eyes. His slowly approached, opening his mouth to talk only when he plopped down onto the grass beside her. "Hi," he smiled tiredly.

"Hi Javi," Daisy smiled at him, suddenly cheerful to see his face.

He squinted at the bright morning light. "How long have you been out here?" Javi asked, his voice a little raspy from sleep.

The blonde looked down at the water, "Just...not long," she lied easily. She had been awake from the moment a hint of orange touched the sky, but Javi didn't have to know that, and he didn't push either.

None of them said anything for a moment, and Javi just stretched his legs out in front of him while staring at the water in front of him.

Daisy looked over at him. His shirt was wrinkled, his hair messy, and dirt on his knees, like he had been outside in the forest for a while, or like he had just woken up. "The coach is making us work now," he said, breaking the comfortable silence.

"What? What do you mean?" Daisy asked, shifting slightly, her diary still open on her lap.

"He's giving out roles, like...who's cooking and cleaning," Javi said with a little shrug, as if it didn't matter much to him.

She blinked. "Oh," she looked down at her diary, suddenly remembering that it was still open in front of her, so, she gently closed it, smoothing the wrinkly pages with her hand. Her foot slipped out of the stream and onto the grass as she turned toward him more fully. "Do you know what I am supposed to do?" She just hoped it wasn't anything that involved heavy lifting or too much walking; her sprained wrist still throbbed occasionally, and her concussion still made her feel easily fatigued.

Javi scratched the back of his neck, thinking. "Um...I think... yeah, Coach said you're supposed to get water," he picked at the grass beside him. "Jackie wanted to go with you, though..Because of your injuries."

Her eyebrows scrunched up in surprise. It was true, but Jackie bringing it up made her feel a little embarrassed seeing as everyone else was already over their injuries. She hated being seen as weak or in need of help, although she felt seen. "She did?" Daisy mumbled, mostly to herself. Frankly, she didn't know why Jackie cared so much now. She was...complicated—especially these days— she was still bossy with others, but somehow not with Daisy.

"Yeah," Javi confirmed, still focused on pushing tiny sticks into the stream with his foot. "She actually didn't even want you to go, because of your injuries. But since Coach wanted you to, she offered to help." He looked up at her. "But the Coach said that Jackie had to do something else, so he paired you with Lottie."

A warm flush spread across her cheeks, her eyes wide. She quickly looked down, hoping Javi wouldn't notice. After that night, she wasn't sure how to act around Lottie, or what Lottie was even thinking, because now, Lottie didn't even want to look at her. The thought of spending more time alone with her made her heart beat a little faster, probably out of happiness. She twisted her cross necklace around her fingers, trying to keep her nerves at bay.

"Oh," she cleared her throat. "Okay, well, I guess I should get going then, to..see if she's ready." She stood up, carefully picking up her diary.

"Can I have a page?"

Daisy hummed in confusion, making him nod toward her diary. "A blank page," he said a bit sheepishly. "I want to draw something too."

Her expression immediately softened, the confusion melting into a smile. "Oh, yes. Of course." She gently flipped through the diary, looking for a clean page.

Most of the pages were half-filled with sketches or quick thoughts, but eventually she found one near the back.

"Here," She tore it out carefully along the seam and held it out to him.

Daisy watched as Javi took the page from her, his fingers brushing the edge delicately like he didn't want to ruin it. She was already digging in the pocket of her dress when he looked up at her again.

"Wait. Here," she said, pulling out her pen and offering it to him. "You'll need this."

He accepted it with a soft, "Thanks," but before he could turn away, she paused, hesitating.

Her thumb grazed the edge of her diary, letting out a quiet breath through her nose. "You know what? Take this too. You're gonna need a surface to draw on." She extended the whole thing forward him.

Javi blinked, surprised. "Really?"

She gave him a little shrug. "Just...don't look at what's in there, please."

His face broke into a grin, "thanks, Daisy. I won't look. Promise."

She wasn't sure if she should have believed that or not, but either way, she did. It's not like there was anything too revealing in there— unless he counted all those pages she dedicated to write about a certain tall girl with dark hair.

"You better not," she teased before taking a step back. "I'll come find you later, okay?"

Javi nodded enthusiastically, already settling into the grass with the diary balanced on his knees. "Okay! I'm gonna make something cool."

"I'm sure you will," she called over her shoulder, chuckling at his antics.

As Daisy turned to make her way through the trees, she felt her heart beat a little too hard in her chest. Rationally, she shouldn't care about this whole situation with Lottie, it's not like this was her first time pulling something like this, and yet, it felt different.

She had barely slept these past few days. The memory of Lottie had been looping in her mind. And that question...Daisy didn't think she was crazy; she could never. She couldn't even think about it for an instant, not even when she'd tell her that she had a bad feeling or that she heard something. Because in reality, if Lottie was crazy, so was she.

COACH BEN WAS SITTING on a chair near the front of the cabin, looking up when Daisy approached. "Ah, here you are, Daisy. Perfect Timing. You and Lottie are on water duty."

"Oh, yes Coach. I know" Daisy replied with a small, polite smile. "Javi told me already," she shifted her weight, clasping her hands loosely in front of her.

"Oh, well, that 's good." Coach Ben nodded slowly, his gaze then dropping to her injured wrist, which still had a makeshift bandage around it. "Are you sure you're up for carrying that bucket?" He asked, his voice laced with concern. "They can get pretty heavy when they're full." He paused, looking at her expectantly. "We can swap you out if you'd prefer—"

"No!" She said a little too quickly. "I mean...there's no need for that, coach, I'm fine, really. It's just a little sprain." She already could imagine the dirty looks her mother would give her, the disappointment, if she ever refused to do a chore. It made her stomach churn simply at the thought.

Coach Ben studied her for a moment, his eyes searching her face. Then, with a sigh, he nodded. "Alright, Daisy. If you're sure. Just be careful." He seemed to understand that she wouldn't back down.

As if on cue, Lottie appeared from the cabin, already walking towards the two empty metal buckets that sat near the door. She glanced at Daisy and Coach Ben, offering a small smile of acknowledgment before turning to the buckets.

"Hi, Lottie," Daisy said, her voice a little higher than usual, a tiny flutter starting in her chest. She watched Lottie pick up one of the buckets, and so, Daisy was quick to reach for the other, her good hand gripping the handle tightly.

Lottie just gave a quiet "Hi" back, her voice firm. She didn't look at Daisy directly, her gaze too focused on the buckets and then towards the path leading to the stream. Her movements were fluid, almost graceful, as she turned and started walking.

Daisy followed, but not before saying goodbye to Ben. The heavy bucket swung a little with each step, and she kept her eyes fixed on the back of Lottie's head, hoping to catch her attention, but she seemed completely lost in her own world. Or like she was ignoring her. Daisy realized in that moment that it was worse than she thought. Lottie was ignoring her, something she never did. At first, she thought she just wanted some space after what (hadn't) happened, but now, there was just this...unsettling silence between them.

The path to the stream felt longer than usual, and Daisy twirled nervously her cross necklace with her free hand. "So," She began—her voice a little to loud, not bearing the silence anymore. "Did...did you sleep well last night?" The question seemed stupid, but it was all she could think of.

"Fine." Her voice flat.

"Oh, well that's good to hear." The blonde smiled, trying to push the awkwardness away. "It's a nice morning for it, right?Getting water..." She gestured vaguely around the forest with her hand.

Lottie just grunted in response; she didn't look up, her pace steady and even. It was clear she wasn't interested in making small talk, or in talking at all. Daisy's smile faltered, a slow heat rising in her cheeks. She pressed her lips together, feeling a familiar pain bubble up in her throat.

Daisy took a deep breath, trying again, her voice smaller now. "A-Are you... Okay, Lottie? You seem a little, um...quiet. More than usual, I mean."

Lottie finally stopped, turning just enough for Daisy to see her profile. Her jaw was tight. "I'm fine, Daisy," she said, her voice strained, "Just focused. We should hurry." She started walking again, picking up her pace, leaving Daisy with her thoughts and heavy bucket.

Daisy flexed her fingers. "Focused on what, exactly? Getting water? Seriously?" She snapped, her voice louder than she intended. "Because you've been acting like this for days! Ever since...well, you know. And I'm trying to be understanding, but you're just being... difficult."

This time Lottie stopped dead in her tracks and spun fully around, "Difficult?" Lottie's voice was low. "You think I'm being difficult, Daisy?" Her gaze swept over Daisy, lingering for a moment on her face before dropping to her cross necklace. "You have no idea what 'difficult' is."

The blonde felt a sting in her eyes. She gripped the bucket handle, her knuckles white. "Well, I'm trying to help you, Lottie! I'm trying to be a good friend, and you're just pushing me away!" She took a deep breath. "I don't even know why you asked me if I thought you were crazy! What was that even supposed to mean?" Daisy's voice trembled.

Her chest heaved slightly, her eyes, which were firmly on her, flickered down to Daisy's lips for a fraction of a second, then back up to meet Daisy's tear-filled ones.

She took a slow, shaky breath. "You really don't know, do you?" Lottie's voice was barely above a whisper, filled with a sadness that Daisy, somehow, completely missed. "You think I'm being difficult? You think this is difficult?" She gestured vaguely between them, then around at the silent, looming trees. "You have no idea what's inside my head, Daisy. What it's like. What I've seen. What I feel." Her voice rose slightly, the last word almost a hiss, raw with unexpressed emotion that Daisy couldn't begin to decode. Lottie took a step closer, her eyes locked onto Daisy's, burning with an almost painful intensity. "You live in a world where everything makes sense. Where being late to curch, being perfect, and getting good grades are your only problems. You don't know what it's like when everything is... complex." Her voice dropped to a choked whisper, her gaze once again falling to Daisy's lips."You couldn't possibly know."

The blonde stared, perplexed. The sudden closeness, the way Lottie's eyes seemed to devour her, made her heart race. "Complex? What are you talking about, Lottie? What does that even mean? What could be so 'complex' that you have to act like this?"

Lottie's gaze remained fixed on Daisy, and her lips parted slightly, as if to say more, maybe to confess the "complex" truth that Daisy so desperately couldn't grasp. But then, as quickly as it came, the moment shattered. Her eyes hardened, and she took a step back, her voice flat again. "You don't want to know." She looked away, turning back to the stream of water. "Just... let's finish this."

That was the blonde's last straw.

"You know what, Lottie?" She stopped abruptly, the heavy metal bucket hitting the dirt with a loud thump. "You can carry your own water. I'm done." She turned around, not waiting for Lottie to say anything back. She walked quickly, the branches scratching at her legs and arms. She just wanted—needed to get away, to breathe, to be somewhere completely alone.

Lottie stood frozen, watching Daisy disappear into the trees. Her jaw, which had been so tight, now seemed to slacken. She closed her eyes, hoping that Daisy's words and sad face would disappear if she did that.