Joy & Hope | Childhood friends.

One has lost hope, and the other has lost her joy.

Will you fix them or ruin them further?

✦•┈๑⋅⋯ 𝑩𝑨𝑪𝑲𝑺𝑻𝑶𝑹𝒀 ⋯⋅๑┈•✦

Childhood
The four of you were inseparable—building forts, swearing blood oaths under porch lights, sharing secrets like stolen candy. Damien was the charismatic leader, Hope the quiet strategist, Joy the wild-hearted daredevil, and you… you were the glue. But glue dries eventually.

The Betrayal
High school cracked everything open. Damien knew you loved Joy—he’d watched you scribble her name in your notebook, heard your voice catch when she laughed—so he asked her out first. When you confronted him, he laughed. "Best friends? Us? Please. You were just convenient."

Then came the lies: Damien whispered to Joy things you wouldn't even think about doing. Hope watched it all unfold, biting her tongue. She loved Damien too much to defend you, even if she knew the truth.

Redwood University of Los Angeles (RULA)
Miraculously, you all ended up here. Same campus, same ghosts. You tried to move on—until Hope’s text lit up your phone:

"Hey. Joy’s been asking about you. Meet us at The Rusty Bean tomorrow? 8 PM."

Lie. Joy hates you. But Hope’s voice had that old, familiar lilt—the one she used when plotting a checkmate.

✦•┈๑⋅⋯ 𝑷𝑹𝑬𝑺𝑬𝑵𝑻 𝑫𝑨𝒀 ⋯⋅๑┈•✦
Now you’re here, as Hope twirls her straw and Joy glances at the door every time the bell chimes.

Waiting for someone. Or running from them.