Author’s note: So I feel really weird tagging anyone despite requests since this piece isn’t Colt centered???….but I will set up a tag list for the next fic lol! Also, this takes place sometime after ‘Divided Road’.
Summary: Riya gets Izzy to to come to terms with her feelings.
Word count: 1,098
Izzy laughed at Riya’s disgusted face, linking her small fingers through Riya’s slender ones. Pineapple on their pizza order unfortunately hadn’t won, but Izzy knew she’d wear her down eventually. Still not welcomed or wanted at home with her dad, Izzy found herself at Riya’s for the evening. She needed as much distance between her and Logan as possible, and one phone call had landed her back with her best friend, any awkwardness between them gone. With the smell of waffles and Reddi Whip in the air, it was the most at home she’d felt since her new found freedom and illegal hobbies. What were the odds?
Riya pushed herself off her bed at once, causing her side to dip and Izzy to loose her balance.
“Hey!”
“You know what this sleepover needs?” Riya’s phone was in her hand, music blasting from the bluetooth speaker on her cluttered desk before Izzy realized what was happening. With the next hit of the beat, the song changed keys, entering the bridge, and Izzy felt her heart lurch into her stomach as the previous night came to mind. “Izzy?” Riya called, glancing over at her mid shimmy. “You’re not singing. This is like, your favorite song!” She sang to the melody of the lyrics, and Izzy complied, faking a smile as she belted out the next set of words.
And when you hoooollld me, I feel like I just can’t catch my breath!
The things you dooooo to me, boy I just can’t catch a breeaak!
Riya jumped on the bed next to Izzy, pulling her up in one fluid motion. However, she must not done a great job with the charade because Riya paused, giving her that same look from earlier when Izzy had first stepped inside the house. “No,” Izzy protested, holding her arms up in protest. “We said this was a boy-drama free night! You said it was a boy-drama free night!” Riya bent down to pick up her phone and turn down the music, settling next to Izzy back on the bed. “That was self-preservation,” Riya gestured to herself before resting a hand on Izzy’s shoulder. “But you my dear are terrible at keeping secrets. You’re more honest than Abe Lincoln, and your face gives you away every single time.”
“It does not,” she huffed, but Riya only crossed her arms, waiting patiently for her to speak her mind. Izzy stared down at her hands, the last notes of the song fading away as she her mind wandered, and gathered her thoughts to speak.
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She’d sat on his bed while Logan watched her from afar. Music blasted from her phone, the radio station playing her newest obsession. If she wasn’t careful, she’d get sick of the song before the week was over. Izzy could feel Logan’s stare, and did her best to keep a straight face, even as he smiled. Her lips twitched, but she managed not to crack a smile. “How much more Spanish do you think you can cram at midnight?” he’d asked, and Izzy put down her textbook long enough to stick her tongue out at him before lifting it up again. Pressed comically against her nose, she knew she was done studying for the night. Logan crawled over to her, gently taking the textbook and kissing her cheek. Izzy turned her head to look him over, and he took her closing the distance between them as permission to continue. It had been a while since Izzy journaled, and this kiss would be one for the diary pages once she had moment alone, she thought. How much sweeter the moment was outside the confines of her childhood bedroom, she’d have a hard time capturing in words.
“Well, would you rather quiz me again, Colt?” Izzy laughed, missing the sharp way Logan pulled back. Missing the name she’d spoken aloud. Missing the way her inner world shifted. The sentence played back in her ears and she rushed to correct her mistake before it was too late. “Logan! Shoot, I meant Logan,” Izzy tripped over her words, but Logan was already pulling away from her, too soon, too fast. Izzy held him into place, afraid to let him go, alarmed at what this all meant. After a tense beat of silence punctuated by the sounds of the radio, he spoke. “Are you picking him over me?” Logan asked the wall, jaw clenched. “No,” Izzy answered firmly, even as her confidence wavered. “I could have easily called you Toby by mistake,” Izzy said, and Logan finally looked back at her, shaking his head. Without thinking, Izzy wrapped her arms around him and felt the muscles in his back relaxed, even as her mind raced on. Together they sat in silence, Logan’s body heat far from a comfort despite their close contact. She pressed her cheek to his, skin rubbing against his stubble, and she used that to ground her in that time and space. Yet, Izzy had never felt so distant from him as she did in that moment.
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In the present Riya gave her a knowing smile, gently cupping her face as if she held all the wisdom in the world to bestow. Izzy pulled back, wary. She knew that look all too well. “I think the answer is pretty obvious,” Riya grinned now, and Izzy reached over for her phone to raise the music volume again. A hand grabbed her wrist and Izzy was forced to look up. “I mean, I like Logan, don’t get me wrong, but didn’t he ghost you?” Izzy couldn’t help laughing and shrugged. “He didn’t ‘ghost’ me…” she made air quotation marks with her fingers to illustrate her point. Granted it had hurt like hell when Logan pulled away from her. He’d brought her into his world, let her in despite being the daughter of a detective. And when the stakes were raised, he’d grown distant, wanting her to leave. Izzy had had enough of people telling her what to do, eighteen years of it in fact. And yet…Logan has only been worried. Plus, it wasn’t like he didn’t believe in her. He even got along with her friends, and despite the cards life had dealt him, he was neither jaded nor miserable. If anything, he made Izzy feel lighter. A small smile grew on her lips. The answer was pretty obvious. Riya shrugged, unaware as she handed her phone over to Izzy to play the DJ. Instead, Izzy threw her arms around her best friend, startling Riya before she returned the embrace. She knew exactly what to do now.