forum Dorm Room 210 [Private RP // Closed — Stalkers welcome!]

Started February 26, 2019 by @Imperfect_Autumn group

tune

Amber frowned slightly and sat down on the edge of the bed. “Hey, hun… You okay?” she murmured softly.

“No,” William replied quietly. “I’m not. But I’ll get over it.”

Amber reached over and ran her fingers through his hair gently before pulling away and standing again. “All right… I’m going to have quick, but then I’ll come back. Okay?”

“Okay,” William responded, breathing deeply when she pulled her hand away. “Take your time, Blue.”

Amber sighed and quickly grabbed some pajamas from her bag before slipping into the bathroom. She pulled on the blue checkered pants and warm long-sleeve, then stepped back into the room. After setting her old clothes down, she scooted into the bed and laid down beside William, looking at his turned back.

“Will… Do you want to talk about it?” she whispered.

"No," came William's immediate reply, though he regretted the tone he used. He hated being like this with Amber, especially when she was only trying to help. "Sleep. You had a tiring day."

Amber sighed and watched him for a moment longer before turning around as well. “Sure, hun… Goodnight.”

For a few minutes, William laid there, his back towards Amber. He tried resisting, but failed in the end. He shifted, facing her, wrapping his arms around her and pulled her towards him, her back pressed against his chest.

“Goodnight, Blue…”

Warm arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her back into the familiar feel of her boyfriend’s chest. His voice rumbled against her back as he murmured, “Goodnight, Blue…”

Amber smiled a little and snuggled back into him, taking his hands in her own. “Night, Will…”

[TIME SKIP: Monday, January 28, 2019]

Amber yawned as she shifted her backpack on her shoulder. She was on her way to the basketball court to watch William’s practice, and it was still pretty cold out. Well. It was January, of course it was cold… As usual, she wore her boyfriend’s jacket, hugging it tight against herself.

These past few days had been strange. William seemed to avoid her as much as possible, and she had no idea why. They’d barely even shared a bed in the week that had passed. She was far beyond beginning to be worried. Now she just was.

Finally, she got to the gymnasium and stepped through the doors. She sighed as the heat from the entryway seeped into her, warming her frozen skin.

Things had been going great. He had let go of Caroline, fallen in love with Amber, managed to calm himself down better… only for everything to shatter when he saw the reason he was what he was.

Every time he remembered how he had snapped at Amber, how he had snatched his arm away like the mere touch of her burned him, William hated himself even more. He remembered the first time he had hurt her. Slammed her against a wall, gripped her arms tight enough to leave bruises. The second time, he narrowly missed punching her face.

And that time at his parents’… he was just about ready to strangle his grandmother. And that made him terrified, because it was exactly what he—

“—liam, watch out!” William snapped out of it just in time for a basketball to fly past his face, slamming into a wall, narrowly missing Amber.

Amber. She was here.

He blinked.

Amber jumped in surprise when the baseball came hurtling toward her. She blinked a few times before chuckling and shaking her head. Picking up the ball, she tossed it back to the guys on the court.

“I think that’s probably an essential thing to have while playing this game, right?” she teased them, walking closer. She noticed William and paused, wondering if she should go to him. Would he want her to?

It could have hit her, William realized. If she had been standing a little to the left, she would have gotten hurt. The thought brought nothing but fury.

“Who threw that?” He looked at his teammates, cold rage on his features. His teammates looked a little alarmed, but otherwise remained silent. So he asked again, this time with a snarl. ”Who threw that?”

“I—it was me,” Jude answered quietly. “I didn’t think Amber would be there.”

“She could have gotten hurt,” William’s voice came out slow. Jude flinched.

“But she didn’t—“

”She could have gotten hurt.”

Amber sighed and looked away. There it was again, his burning rage. Over something so small.

“William… It’s okay. It didn’t hit me, and I would have been fine if it had,” she said gently, stepping closer to him. “It’s not Jude’s fault.”

William’s unflinching gaze turned towards Amber, clenching his jaw. She would have been fine if it had? A basketball hurt. She would have not been fine.

“Okay, that’s enough,” Jordan’s voice sounded, interrupting William before he spoke again. “Let’s get back to practice. Ten more minutes and then we’re free to go.”

Amber blinked up at him, taking slow, even breaths. She returned his gaze without breaking it, though it was hard. It had been a long time since he’d looked at her like this, like he was so upset with her that he was barely suppressing his anger.

But he wasn’t, right? He wasn’t upset with her but with Jude. He was upset that she’d almost gotten hurt. She would have been fine, she knew that, but it definitely would have hurt.

Going back to practice with his mind still raging was hard. When the ten minutes were up, William was breathing heavily, his anger still present. Why he was so furious, at this point, even he didn’t know. The ball had missed Amber. Jude had apologized. So why was he still angry?

He snatched his towel from the table without bothering to wait for Caroline, wiping his face and his neck from sweat. He didn’t walk up to Amber. He knew that if he had, he would kiss her.

And that was something he couldn’t do.

Practice finished, and Will didn’t come to see her. Normally, he would have her dry him off, she would make some remark about him doing it himself, then she would end up doing it anyway. Recently, though, he did it himself. Just like today.

Amber sighed and pulled the jacket back on. She slung her purse over her shoulder before starting down the bleachers to him. When she reached where he was, she reached out to gently set a hand in his arm.

“Will… Can we talk?” she asked softly.

William jumped a little before he realized it was just Amber. He sighed heavily, pausing what he was doing to look down at her. He knew at one point she would crack. It was as hard for her as it was for him. Staying away, at least, was torture.

“Yeah,” he breathed, realizing just how much he missed looking at her, or into her eyes. Or even just touching her. “We can talk.”

Amber nodded slowly, still looking up at him. She couldn’t look away from his eyes… When had she last gotten to look into his eyes? She’d almost forgotten how much she loved them.

“Should we meet at home? Or do you want to talk here?” she wondered quietly.

Anywhere with her was home for William. As long as she was there, it was home. It would be hard, William realized, leaving her. It was already hard avoiding her.

“Home,” he answered quietly. “We can talk at home.”

“Home sounds good. I’ll meet you there, then,” Amber said, managing to give him a small smile. “See you in a few, Will.”

“I’ll—I’ll be late,” William managed to say, not yet ready to have that talk. If they started, he would have to say it. He was not ready for it yet. “I’ll be late today. You can go home without me.”

Amber's smile wavered, but she managed to keep it in place even though it looked a little faked by now. "Oh. Okay. Sure. I'll, uh, leave something for you in the fridge, then," she murmured.

William tried hard not to wince. She had lost that light in her eyes. It was his fault. He was the reason she smiled less often.

“Don’t wait up for me,” he said to her softly, shoving his hands in his pockets so he wouldn’t grab her. He had survived this long. One touch and he’d crumble. “I’ll… see you later.”

"Sure," Amber murmured, nodding slowly. She shifted the purse on her shoulder and wrapped one of her arms tighter around herself. Under her breath, as she turned away, she added, "I miss you…"

William froze at her words, something clenching at his heart. He swallowed thickly but held his tongue.

I miss you, too, he wanted to say.

I love you.

I'm sorry.

In the end, he just let her walk away.

Nothing. She knew he'd heard her. He'd even tensed up, and she'd been sure of it then. But he didn't say anything in response.

Amber kept walking, her bag suddenly feeling very heavy on her shoulder. What was happening? Had they really fallen apart so soon? It felt like they'd barely been together for a month, but it also felt like it had been forever. In a good way, of course.

William dreaded going back to the dorm. It was nearing midnight by now, and he was still in the still in the basketball court, not knowing how he could face Amber.

Finally, he pulled himself to his feet and grabbed his basketball, walking back home. He hoped Amber was asleep. He did not want to have that talk. Not now, not ever. Maybe he was being a coward, but he didn't care.

He reached the dorm sooner than he liked, but he exhaled deeply and entered.

Amber had tried to wait for him to get back, she really had, but she was just too tired, apparently. She had sat down in the couch and tugged her knees to her chest as she watched the door. She refused to cry. Only a few years slipped past their hold on her eyes, but she quickly wiped them a way.

Now, she was stretched out on the couch, one arm being used as a pillow and her feet nearly hanging off the side. The tears had gone unchecked when she'd closed her eyes, so there were a few dark lines of mascara running down her face.