Only because I need a win in my fantasy life. Real life … that’s complicated.
ReadToLiv
Real life always is. But I’m listening.
TheWriteGuy
Picture this. Now that Raelle is accepting of what has been going on between her and Cassemir, and now that she can’t deny their connection, everything else—the battles, the chaos, the impossible odds—feels sharper, more urgent. Every moment matters, every word carries weight. Not only do they have their own personal quests to complete, they must also figure out how each other will fit into the paths they’ve worked so hard to achieve.
ReadToLiv
That’s … kind of beautiful. I think I get why you love writing it so much. Everyone has their battles, right? And the harder you fight for the life you want, the harder it is to let someone else into it. Sometimes, it feels like you have to choose between your own path and … something else you want but aren’t sure you can have.
TheWriteGuy
Exactly. It’s not just about two people falling for each other—it’s about what it costs them. About how much harder it is to let someone in when you’ve already built walls and sworn to stand on your own. But sometimes … sometimes the right person doesn’t tear down those walls. They slip through the cracks you didn’t even realize were there. And suddenly, you’re not standing alone anymore.
ReadToLiv
So what you’re saying is, Raelle’s in way over her head, but she’s pretending she’s fine with it? Classic. I give her three chapters before she admits she’s hopelessly smitten and it all blows up in her face.
TheWriteGuy
Three chapters? You think she’ll hold out that long? I give her two—tops. She’s already slipping, she just doesn’t know it yet.
ReadToLiv
Poor girl. Fighting fate never works out well in fantasy. Or in real life, come to think of it.
TheWriteGuy
True.
I stared at her last messages far too long. Raelle and Cassemir were fictional, caught in my imagination, yet I couldn’t help thinking of myself and this strange double life I was living. WithReadToLiv, everything felt effortless and reckless, like I could say anything. With Livvi … things were messier, harder to explain. And yet I couldn’t deny that I was stuck between two paths, both sides demanding more.
The crazy part was, I couldn’t tell which one of them I was thinking about more. Every time I closed my eyes, it felt like they were both there—making my heart race in two directions at once, each leaving a mark I couldn’t ignore.
CHAPTER 9
LIVVI
Iwas halfway through the first chapter of my book when Roxie crashed into our apartment like a glitter-covered hurricane.
“Get up, hermit girl. We’re going out tonight.”
I didn’t even glance up. “Define ‘we.’”
“Both of us.” Her hands landed dramatically on her hips. She was already dressed like she had a stage waiting for her—jeans, sparkly top, hair curly and glossy. Next to her, I felt like the human equivalent of sweatpants.
“I’m busy.” I lifted the book like proof.
Roxie groaned, flopping onto the couch beside me. “You read every night. It’s borderline tragic. Do you want your twenties to be remembered as the era of fictional boyfriends and herbal tea?”
“Yes.”
She snatched the book out of my hands before Icould blink. “Nope. Not happening. It’s a Friday night, and you’re too pretty to waste away in here.”
I sighed, but secretly, there was a little spark of warmth in my chest. Roxie was relentless, but it was nice, too—having someone who actually wanted me around. I wasn’t used to that.