Marisol did not like being this broken-up and vulnerable. She wanted Skye to see a happy, emotionally-stable side of her. She had worked to make sure Skye knew how happy their time together made her. She did not want to give Skye the impression she was taking her for granted, which meant when she made time for her even if time was tight.

Now that Marisol was feeling like a failure who wasted her semester, Skye wanted to be here for her. She offered time to make things easier to deal with. Shared time was Skye’s love language, and it was sweet of her to offer.

There were things Marisol should be doing. She had to tell her uncle and mother what happened. She needed to reach back out to the school to plan how she was going to deal with class costs and housing. There was so much weighing on her mind.

But she did want to spend her time with Skye because Skye made her happy, and maybe she needed that right now? ”I think some music and some you sounds good. Let’s hold off on the cookie dough, though…”


Marisol bit her tongue because Skye was wrong, but she was not wrong about everything. Swallowing her frustration, she forced out words. ”I didn’t stop loving you, Skye. It was just too much. There was so much you, I was losing track of everything else.”

She hated admitting that, because a weaker version of her had blamed that on Skye. Marisol was going to say more before a window on the first floor of her building opened and a nice old lady peeked out. “Oh, Marisol. If you have a moment to drop by, I’d love to give you that sweater we talked about. That skin-and-bones fiancee of yours needs all the help she can get this Winter!”

Marisol winced. Hard. This was going to go poorly. ”Thank you, Mrs. Mazeiko, I’ll drop by later,” she mumbled half-heartedly, hearing the older woman accept the answer and close her window. Good; she did not want the kindly old Greek woman around for the fallout.

"Well, it sure felt like it," she said, some of the edge falling from her voice. She hated to admit it, but she was vulnerable. Weak. "I just...I wish you'd have at least given me closure. For the longest time I thought it was just a break, but...with every passing day it became more and more apparent that...you were just gone, and there was nothing I could do about it." That emotional wall was slowly crumbling down, and to be honest, Skye didn't like it. But Mari was always good at getting to the real her. But it felt good to know it wasn't all her fault.

And then the window opened, and Skye's face very briefly looked as though she'd just been gut-punched. Ouch. Now not only was the wall back up, but so many feelings hit her all at once that she definitely would have flashbanged again if not for Mari's aura. But Skye swallowed those feelings. She was gonna try to be mature about this.

"You...you got engaged? Congratulations," she said, her enthusiasm more than a little half-assed. You know what? F*** it. She was not gonna be mature about this. She was going to be the emotional, petty b**** that was dying to come out and play. Her eyes narrowed and the smile dropped.

You know...I'm surprised you found the time to get engaged," she said coldly. "Did you immediately go from me to someone else or did you wait a business day out of decency?" Her words dripped with salty, bitter venom as she figuratively dug the knife in and twisted it. She let that sit for a moment, calming down a little.

"Really though, I'm glad you're happy." Her tone made the comment a little backhanded, and it probably was. "While I'm not moving as fast as you, I've had a girlfriend for a little while, myself," she said with a shrug. Dammit. She'd really wished she could have dropped that as a bomb, but that fiancee bombshell had to drop first and ruin her oomph.

That little joke had gotten out of hand, and now Marisol was suffering the consequences. This was what she deserved, honestly. She braced for the impact, but Skye’s initial reaction was softer than she expected.

That vulnerable moment did not last, of course. The frigid bite of Skye’s dig was sank into Marisol’s gut. ”I… I didn’t…”

Her muttering did not resolve into anything before Skye dropped a bomb of her own. Skye found a girlfriend. That was… hard to hear. Harder than Marisol expected. She ended things, and she was sure she had found her way to being at peace with their breakup. That did not make it easy to hear your ex moved on.

”The fiancee thing… it’s a misunderstanding with my neighbors. She’s just a roommate,” she admitted softly, feeling the sting of tears forming in her eyes. Damn traitor eyes. ”Skye… I’m happy you found someone. You deserve it. Honestly...”

Marisol sat at a desk working on a paper. She was a performing arts student; why the hell did she even have to do papers? She was frustrated; that was happening a lot lately. Right now, she was just doing her best to keep her head down and focus-- she could not fail again.

Ouch. That was...

"Oh...shit..." Skye's face dropped as she saw Mari's own expression. "I...Goddammit Mari, I'm...I'm sorry." She felt like something tried to rip her in half. Months ago, Skye would have beaten anyone that hurt Mari to a pulp, and now here she was, intentionally hurting Mari. It hit her like a ton of bricks that she was treating Mari just like Skye's mom had treated her.

In the moment, Skye thought she deserved it, but...no. Mari did not deserve it. She deserved to be held, to be happy. She'd made a choice, and while Skye wasn't happy with that choice, and probably never would be...

Skye's own eyes started to well up as she bit her tears. "Please...don't cry. You'll make me cry and nobody wants to see that shit," she said, trying to crack a smile but her voice was defeated. 

Skye was...bored. Video-games, drawing, reading...none of that helped. Her phone had been silent all day. Nothing. She'd sent Mari a morning text, but it went unanswered, as was becoming a trend. Hell, she couldn't even remember the last time she'd seen her girlfriend. Skye knew she was focusing on school, but...did she have to practically vanish? She lay on the bed, grabbing her phone and opening the texts before ticking one out.

~Hey, Mari. I know you're probably busy again but...I really want to see you. If only for a minute? I miss you. Love you, Hun <3~

She hit send, then plopped back on the bed, looking at the ceiling with a long, deep sigh as the room around her lit up in blue.

When Marisol’s roommate returned to the dorm, she brought some friends who were excited for a night of fun and festivities. Annoyed, Marisol gathered her stuff and tried to find a common area to work in. Her first three attempts, she found groups of friends hanging out. They had the right, but it was getting to Marisol. Everyone was so ready to have fun and goof off, but she was the one overtired with her nose to the grindstone.

Her new roommate was a party girl who did not mesh well with the studious super-senior. Marisol was upset she needed a new roommate. She should be done. How could she fail her classes? She let herself get so distracted. She had wonderful things in her life, but… those same wonderful things almost derailed her whole career.

Marisol winced when her phone buzzed. She was seeing Skye less lately, and part of her hated that, but… part of her noticed how she could bury herself in work now. Her first relationship was great at its best, but was it sustainable? The way they used to spend together… she wondered.

Skye was clearly noticing. This kind of message was coming a lot now. She missed her. Wished she was not so busy. She loved her. And Marisol loved her back but was love enough to ignore the rest of her life?

Before she could think twice, Marisol swiped a message and hit send, then her eyes went wide when she processed the words she had let herself send.

Skye… I don’t think I can do this anymore.

What. The. Fuck. No. She did not just--

Skye stared at the message on her phone, her heart racing as she took in what was happening, her hair suddenly flashing between red and blue as the lights in her hands made it look like some sort of crime scene.

BANG!!!

The flashbang was sudden and instantaneous, but it didn't slow her down. The hair and the lights were still shifting between red and blue, but she was scrambling, grabbing a hoodie and tossing it on, pulling on whatever pants she could find, and the first pair of socks(mismatch) and shoes(slippers) she could find as she hurriedly pulled her belongings together. Her heart was racing and it felt like time was going in slow motion. She didn't even text back.

The next thing she knew, she had left the mansion, storming out in her hastily thrown together outfit and catching the next bus to Mari's dorms. The ride seemed to take forever, but finally came to stop in the familiar territory. She stormed into her girlfriend--ex girlfriend?'s room and--found a sort of mini party going on. "Mari," she hissed, her hair still going between sad and angry. The roommate shrugged, and Skye gave a defeated huff before slamming the door and looking around, roaming the various areas she knew but finding nothing.

It was only then she pulled out her phone and opened up her text messages.

~~Where the **** are you?~~

As soon as she got a response, she'd make a beeline straight there. If not, she'd keep looking until she found her.

Either way, when she found Mari, she was going to be seething, her body tense and shaking, tears threatening to escape her eyes. "Really?" She would hiss, holding up the phone and shrugging her shoulders.

Did Mari really just send that? Her eyes were glued to her phone screen analyzing the short message she herself had sent. When she read it, the message sounded… ominous. If that message ended up on her own phone, she would feel a sense of dread, knowing what it would mean for her relationship.

Except Marisol had sent it. And right now? She mostly felt exhausted. She could not think about this right now. She could not spend her night staring at her phone waiting for Skye’s reply. Instead, she buried her face in her work. She was in a fog, forcing words onto paper, oblivious to the world.

She had no clue how much time passed when Marisol’s phone started buzzing. For all the resolve she acted like she had, she snatched the phone immediately to read the message. Where was she?

Oh. Oh shit. Skye was here.

Mari just typed out the floor and the common area she was in and braced herself. Skye arrived with the passion she was known for, but this came in a much different color. Despite everything, Marisol stood to get Skye into her bubble. She could not let Skye flashbang her dorm.

This was easier on the phone, and that made Marisol a coward. Now she looked at her feet, trying to string together words that made sense to her. It was harder in person. ”I… listen, Skye. I have so much I need to focus on. I can’t fail this semester. I just… I don’t think I can juggle school, the show, and us.” She felt the heat of guilt on her face admitting it.

Skye was shaking, her hair and lights flashing from red to blue, but...seeing Mari...the occasional flash of pink crept into the color mix, if only briefly before becoming overshadowed by anger or sadness. Mari stepped closer, and Skye stepped back. "Uh-uh. No. You don't get to decide to be close to me now after blowing me off for god-knows-how long and then sending me...this," she said coldly, her voice steady despite her body shaking and tears welling up in her eyes. "If I need to, I'll come to you. On my terms. But you and I? We're gonna talk. And you're not gonna hide behind a phone, or your ability to cancel out mine. No. You're gonna see what you did to me..." As she spoke, the light was more dominantly red, and then turned to blue as tears began to roll down her face.

"So....that's just it, then? You're just dropping me because you failed once? Like I'm the reason? I'm keeping straight A's, for the record." Her voice was harsh, bitter, and hurt. She didn't want it to end this way, she wanted Mari to change her mind about this. But that probably wasn't going to happen. Skylar Jade Sinclaire doesn't beg, was the thought that ran through her mind.

What makeup she wore was running as her hair veered to a more dominant blue, with the occasional pink before the pink phased out and the blue became faster and faster until--

Skye swallowed her pride and stepped forward, closing the distance between them and just sitting on the floor in Mari's little bubble of safety, hugging her knees. "So....this is really...it for us?" She looked up at Mari, biting her lip, afraid of what was coming next.

Marisol was not happy watching Skye feel this angry with her. It hurt. She also knew letting her girlfriend (or… well, was that still what she could call her) flashbang in her dorm was a bad idea, and she wanted to eliminate that possibility so they could talk about this.

Except Skye stepped back. She was upset, but she was being petty. Marisol was not allowed to step closer, even though they both knew she was trying to protect everyone. Because Skye was full of emotion as always and needed to throw this tantrum at full-power.

Skye called her out for ending things because of her grades, but the way Skye threw out her own straight As left a sour taste in Marisol’s mouth. ”Good for you, but I didn’t,” she muttered cooly. ”I got wrapped up in you and I almost fucked up my career.”

It was unfair. Incredibly unfair. But she finally admitted what she had danced around for months; part of her did blame Skye for those failed classes. Not even Skye; just their relationship and the way Marisol could not say no to it. The way she would run to Skye any time she could.

Marisol saw it coming; Skye was getting ready to blow and Marisol closed her eyes when she expected it-- but nothing. When she opened them, Skye was in her six-foot bubble. The dancer breathed a small sigh of relief and slumped to the ground, mirroring how Skye sat. ”I… don’t know,” she conceded. ”I don’t know what forever is, but I’m just trying to look at what’s in front of me. I think… right now… we’re done.”

She struggled to get the words out, and they cut into her heart. ”I’m sorry, Skye. I…” What? She was going to say she loved Skye, because she still did, but that was not going to make things better. She did not deserve to say it. ”I just need time alone.”

"You're not blaming me for this," she hissed, looking at Mari. "You almost fucked up your career. All I did was try to support and be there for you." She felt herself sobbing, and she just buried her face in her knees as the rest of Mari's words sunk in.

"So just like that you're pulling the trigger. First sign of hardship and you decide you don't want me anymore. Fine..." She gave a hard shudder, a mix of feelings surging through her as she did. "Fine. Just...let me know when you get this sorted, okay? I..." She didn't finish the sentence. She couldn't. There was no 'I love you,' to be said. It just wasn't right.

Pushing herself to her feet, she took a tentative step back. Her hair flashed blue and red again, but she steadied herself and it settled on blue. "Goodbye, Mari..." she mumbled as she walked away, going into the nearest restroom and closing the door.

In the following moment, there was a loud Bang! and a flash of bright light illuminated the outline of the door. Then, the door opened again, and a very tired, defeated, tear-stained Skye trudged out, eyes focused on the floor, not even looking at anyone as she made her way back out of the door.

Marisol did almost ruin her own career. Maybe that was not Skye’s fault, but that did not make things better. She needed to focus on what was in front of her, and Mari never learned to see anything else when Skye was around.

Marisol did not say anything when Skye accused her of pulling the trigger. She was right. Things got hard and she was leaving. She just… did not see another option. She could not risk this right now.

Watching her now-ex-girlfriend step away, Marisol had words hanging on her tongue, unsaid because she did not know what to say. This was what she asked for, but God, it was harder to do this in person. ”Bye, Skye,” she replied softly, fighting the urge to check on Skye when she heard the eventual flashbang.

It was good that Skye was moving on. Deep down, Marisol believed that and she just wished she could get her eyes on the same page. ”I’m alright, I promise. That’s… it’s good, though. I hope she’s good to you, Skye, honestly.” Whoever this new woman was in Skye’s life, Marisol hoped she was not the kind of girl to get easily overwhelmed or send a breakup text.

And that moment in her past was still weighing on her. ”Hey. Um. I’m… sorry with how I fucked up. With the breakup.” She had to own her failures, and that was a big fail.

Skye was feeling horrible; yes, she was angry at Mari, and yes, maybe she even deserved every bit of sass and bitterness that Skye had given her. But...seeing what it did to Mari...she was starting to understand why Mari tried to break up with her via text in the first place. It was easier to hurt someone when you couldn't see first hand what it did to them. Skye still felt tears welling up in her eyes though. That...she wasn't going to be able to stop.

"Yeah...she is," Skye said with a soft smile, looking at Mari with her watery brown eyes. "I hope you are okay....really. I'm sorry I was such a bitch. I...I understand a little better now. I was just...so ****ing pissed at you for ending it the way you did, but I never really...I never thought about how you felt going through this. I knew you weren't just being a bitch but....despite everything I knew about you, part of me just didn't want to believe that." She sighed, tears flowing freely from her eyes now.

"I guess I thought if I painted you as the villain here, it would make it easier for me to move on but...that was wrong and I can't exactly say it even worked. I was just as at fault for not understanding..." She let her eyes drop to the ground, looking very closely at her rainbow colored laces. Maybe it would have been easier to deal with this if she'd have just stayed mean.

This was a new position for Marisol; to see a girl she dated moving on with another woman. She had no scope of reference for how that would make her feel, but it sucked. It made her think about their relationship. It made her reflect on the breakup. It made her wonder… did she make a mistake it was too late to take back?

But she could not dwell on those things. Not here on the sidewalk standing in front of Skye. Because she was not going to continue on a selfish path and complicate both their lives with what ifs. She had done enough to Skye by now.

Managing a smile, Marisol brushed the tears out of her eyes with the back of her hand. ”You don’t need to apologize, Skye. I didn’t exactly let you down easy. I would have hated me in your shoes.” For a while, she was keeping herself busy just so she would not hate herself in her own shoes. ”You were a big part of my life… and I never thanked you for that like I should have. So... thank you.”

And there they were, both looking at their laces. This was a lot of unexpected, heavy emotion. Maybe enough that they needed some processing time now. ”Hey, I have to go check out a couch for Alice and I, but… well, it was good seeing you’re okay. And the mohawk really does suit you,” she admitted with a soft smile. ”Maybe… well, when we’re ready, text me?”

The thought occurred to her, and she flinched. ”Do you need my number again?” Based on how Skye was feeling when they crossed paths, Marisol would not have doubted if her number had been deleted from Skye’s mobile.

Skye's face was red, as her heart fluttered a little and her eyes stayed glued to her sneakers. Skye wiped her own eyes, rubbing them until they were bloodshot as Mari spoke.

"I could never hate you," she croaked out, biting her lip. "I tried. Trust me. I tried. When we were together I promised I'd never hurt you, and I did. Yeah you tried to end it in the worst way, but...that doesn't take away what we had. You...you really changed my outlook on things. I never thought I could handle a relationship. I probably can't handle one ending, but....Thank you," she said, finally looking up.

"Oh, right. Yeah. I was just...walking, actually. It's...it's nice to see you too," she admitted. "Oh, yeah." She nodded, blushing a little at Mari's last question. "No. I still have it," she said quietly, admitting that she didn't delete Mari's number. She didn't even delete all of Mari's pictures from her phone. Further proof that Skye didn't succeed in hating her ex, as much as her salty bitter side had wanted to.

"Well, uh....take care," she said awkwardly, not really knowing what to do from here. Go for the hug? A handshake? Just walk away?

Taking a breath, she pulled Mari into a very quick, probably very awkward hug before she turned and went on her way, not looking back, her hair flashing orange as soon as she left the aura.

Marisol wondered how true Skye’s words were. She did seem to hate Marisol for what she did before, but maybe that was just how she showed the hurt. Skye’s hair needed more specific shades. Not that they would help this close. ”I learned a lot about… well, everything thanks to you. I’ll never regret that,” she promised.

It was comforting knowing Marisol had not been completely obliterated from everything Skye owned. She did not want Skye hurting because of her, but she was happy to know there had always been a place, however small, for Marisol in the mutant’s life.

Before Marisol could say goodbye, she was pulled into a quick embrace. It was weird but warm, and after everything, she could take that. She’d take it gladly.

With reddened cheeks, Marisol waved meekly as Skye walked away. ”Take care. Talk to you soon, Skye!” And she was nervous yet happy that she meant it.