Thorns and Petals

"Exams are finally over!" Adelia breathed out cheerfully. She stretched her arms above her head as she yawned, the sleepless nights visible in the form of dark circles on her face. "God, this really took a toll on my skin. I need my beauty sleep!"Willow laughed. "You can sleep as much as you want now, Adel.""Haha, you're right. I'm going to sleep so much, even hibernating animals will be proud. Anyway, Will—" She looked at him suggestively and added, "I don't even need to ask what you're doing, right? You're probably going to have lots of fun with your boyfriend on your little 'date,' right?"Willow blushed a little. "We- we're just hanging out... It's just, like, an after-exam celebration! Really!"Adelia's expression showed her disbelief. Willow insisted, "It's just a hangout! We're just hanging out as friends! Look, you can even come along if you want!""And get myself on the top of Charlie's hit list? No, thank you, Mr. Willow Astor.""You know he isn't like that!" Willow sighed. "He's nice! He would never do anything like that!"Adelia just looked at him with a knowing expression and didn't bother saying anything else. "Love really does make people blind," she muttered, leaving Willow to interpret her words."You really-" Willow abruptly stopped as he bumped into someone. He was about to apologize but froze when he saw who it was."You... Why are you here?""That's so cold, 'darling,'" Liam smiled, "You couldn't have already forgotten your adorable little lover, right?"Willow's alarmed expression only made Liam raise his voice even higher, not bothering to hide their relationship. In fact, he seemed to go out of his way to announce it to everyone, earning strange looks from passing students."My love, why aren't you saying anything?" he asked, a hint of sadness on his face. "Aren't you happy I came to pick you up?""Why are you here?" Willow asked coldly, not bothering to play along."Aren't you happy to see me, love? I...I just thought... You were so busy with your exams before. I just wanted to cheer you up, so I came here." He pretended to be hurt, continuing in a saddened tone, "Did I make you unhappy? Did I make a mistake, Will?"Willow didn't give him any sympathy as he replied without hesitation, "Yes. Now that you know, scram. I have plans with someone else."Liam dropped the wounded act and demanded, "With whom, if I may ask?""That doesn't concern you, Liam Sanders.""Well, I think I have a pretty good guess about who it is. It's Charlie, isn't it?" His expression distorted for a second before he covered it with a smile. "Your 'friend' Charlie, right, love? That reminds me... Shouldn't you introduce him to me? After all, I need to know what men hang around my boyfriend. I need to ensure that a friend behaves just like a friend and knows who the lover is, sweetie."Willow looked down without saying anything for some time before he finally muttered, barely able to hold it in, "...Why are you doing this... You promised...""Hmm?" Liam smiled. "Did you say something, sweetie?""We had a deal!" Willow knew he shouldn't lose his composure in front of Liam and that the deal was too good to be true anyway, but he couldn't help himself. "You promised!""And I do remember my promise. I promised to never bother you about Charlie again. And I'm not." Liam chuckled, "I never agreed to let you two-time, sweetie. You can have only one lover, and that's me. I just agreed not to ask you to remove Charlie completely from your life, giving you the freedom to stay 'friends.' Lovers, however, is out of the question, darling. After all, I don't like sharing my stuff with others."He caressed Willow's red face, enjoying the sight of his distressed eyes. "Are you mad, sweetie?"Willow didn't reply and just continued to stare at him unblinkingly. Even he didn't know what he was trying to achieve here. After all, it's not like Liam would take pity on him."Ah, I just love you too much. Come, let's talk." Liam took Willow's hand to lead him somewhere less crowded. Willow didn't protest, letting the shorter boy guide him, because people were watching. It would be bad if Charlie heard any rumors."...What did you want to talk about?" he snapped, not bothering to be polite. He was trying to vent his anger over the betrayal with petty remarks, because, well, it's not like he could do anything else."Oh, you're as feisty as ever, love. Good to see that," Liam smirked. "I almost thought you were going to cry there for a second."Willow bit his lip and looked down. He was trying so hard to keep himself together, not to cry, because that's what Liam wanted. Although he'd said he didn't really believe Liam, there was still a small hope, a sweet fantasy, that maybe, just maybe, Liam was telling the truth. But his words crushed that little hope, making Willow fall back into the void of despair and helplessness."But of course, you won't cry. Not in front of me, right?" Liam smiled, Willow's thoughts like an open book to him. "Because you hate me. You'll always show me your hostile side, your snappy remarks. Your tears," His fingers brushed Willow's cheek, curiosity shining in his eyes. "-they're all reserved for Charlie, right? All your delicate, vulnerable side... saved for him.""You'll always show me your pointed thorns, the exquisite petals saved for him.""...If you're just going to spew nonsense, then excuse me. Because unlike a certain someone, I have actual things to do."Liam laughed at Willow's retort and grabbed his hand, stopping him. "There you go with your thorns again, sweetie. But don't worry. These thorns—they don't bother me at all. Because it's the pain that lets me fully appreciate your beauty.""But still... it makes me curious. I'm curious about how soft your petals are. I want to see your other sides, the other faces you can make."His words just made willow angrier, and more frustrated. he clenched his fist, and said in a snappy tone, "I'm leaving. I don't think either of us is going to achieve anything by continuing this conversation any further."Liam tsked and pulled his hand, making it impossible for Willow to leave. "Why in such a hurry? Listen to me, will you?""Love, let's make a deal," he said shamelessly. A mocking smile covered his face as he added, "Listen carefully, alright? Who knows, maybe you'll end up profiting this time around?"