Present day; Philadelphia Pennsylvania:
Liza stood, her feet rooted to the ground, she knew Olivia would never get it, never understand. How could she? Olivia never failed as miserably as she had. Why did Liza ever think she could explain, make her see her side? She was still the stubborn girl she had met all those years ago, of course she wouldn’t break. It was so rare that Liza ever saw the strong girl, woman, break down. Would this even break her if it was her? She stared at her best friend, willing herself to speak, her feet to move, anything but just stand there frozen like a statue. She couldn’t stay, be judged any longer, she needed to get out of there. She’ll never get it! Liza needed to finally escape, break free, let everyone just move on. She’ll never just let me leave. Liza couldn’t stay and watch them live the painful life she’d condemned them all to. It would hurt far too much to watch him suffering from pain that she caused. Just push her out of the way! She loved him, loved them both, this was the girl she helped raise, she was as much her daughter as her friend, could she really walk away from them both so easily? Do I still want to leave? It doesn’t matter! But maybe… You failed, he deserves better! It wasn’t my fault! You have no choice but to leave! Can I live without them, without him? Liza shook the doubts from her head, she had to leave. She couldn’t let the conflicting thoughts cloud her head, her judgment. Leaving was for the best, wasn’t it? “Olivia, move.” She said, her voice full of conviction, shaking less than she expected. She had to, this was for the best, she couldn’t stay and hurt him more than she already had. She was far too weak to stay, she didn’t deserve him, maybe she never did, maybe this was how it was always supposed to end.
“No!” Olivia said, hands resting on her hips as she scowled at her best friend, the closest thing she ever had to a mother. “I’m not going to let you make the biggest mistake of your life! I’m not letting you give up, I’m not letting you break him!”
Liza let out a broken sob at Olivia’s words, the words cutting deeper than Olivia would ever know. God she’s so damn stubborn! Why couldn’t Olivia just see how badly she already screwed up? Why was Olivia still demanding she fight? Couldn’t Olivia see the fight was over, that she lost? Why couldn’t Olivia see that she failed, miserably. The last thing Liza wanted to do was give up, concede, but she had to, she couldn’t bear to fail all over again. Liza couldn’t wake up every day seeing his sad broken eyes staring back at her. She had already lost everything that she cared about, now all she had to do was walk away. Giving up on trying to salvage her broken life was the only option she had left. “I already made my biggest mistake Liv, I already broke us both. Just please, let me leave. It’s what’s best for both of us, he’ll have a chance at happiness without me.”
“God, just how stupid are you?” Olivia questioned rolling her emerald eyes. “You leave, you will break him! He won’t have anything left. You will destroy him. You will let that idiot Rhys win! He’ll get what he wanted, Bastien to be broken, and for what? A hit Bastien never committed?! Sure, you’ll still be alive, but maybe that would be worse, because you chose to walk away from him. He would be broken if you had been killed, but it would have been out of his control, out of your control. If you walk out—hell Liza, it would fucking destroy him and you know it! I was a stubborn brat back then, but you got through to me, I’m begging you, don’t walk away, don’t break him. If you leave, he won’t rest until he completely destroys New Jersey until all that remains is a scorch mark where the state used to be. Please fight Liza, I know you are as strong and stubborn as I am, now just prove it to your own damn self!”
Liza roughly wiped at the tears streaming down her cheeks. She didn’t think it was possible to hurt more than she already did. She had lost everything, her entire future, her entire life was changed that day, she carried the bitter reminder of her shortcomings with her everyday, but Olivia’s words felt like she was being stabbed repeatedly with a dull, burning hot blade. She shouldn’t be surprised, Olivia did always know how to use her words in the way that hurt the most, her greatest form of protection, Liza just never thought she’d ever be on the receiving end of them again. If only it was as easy as Olivia thought, if only there was a way for her to stay. “Liv—” Liza sobbed as she sank to her knees. Her entire body aching from the weight of the pain she carried, the heavy weight pressing down around her with such force her legs could support her no longer. I wish I couldn’t feel, that this was all some horrible dream I could wake from. She sobbed into her hands, her body bent forward nearly folded in half. She felt broken, like she’d never be able to pull herself back together again, she knew she’d never heal if she stayed. How could she ever pull herself back together with the constant memories of how she failed him hanging around them like dark storm clouds. She let out a shuddering sob as all the pain of the previous weeks crushed her. All the fear, hurt, sadness washing over her at once, drowning her in despair. Why couldn’t I have been strong enough? Why did I have to fail everyone? She had found her place, where she belonged, she had been happy—of course it couldn’t last. She should have known better than to think that she would get a happy ending. God, how could I have been so stupid?! Her spirit was crushed, broken, her body battered, she didn’t think there was any getting back to who she was.
Ten years ago; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania- Liza:
Liza smiled softly as she pulled her brightly colored streaked raven hair back into a messy bun. It hadn’t been easy, but she felt like she was getting through to Olivia. She slowly but surely showed the teen over the course of the past six months that she wouldn’t go anywhere. Liza knew Olivia was still slightly resistant, but that was more about Olivia’s past than anything about Liza, she just had to keep proving to her that she would be different.
Liza understood that Olivia felt she was easily forgotten after her own parents walked away from her on a fool’s mission leaving her with Bastien. She would hate to think what would have happened to Olivia had Bastien not raised her as his own. Liza didn’t have a mother growing up either, but she had girlfriends to lean on, something she noticed Olivia lacked. Actually she had noticed Olivia didn’t seem to have any friends, staying mostly to herself or learning the family business.
Liza got it, she did, it wasn’t easy being the daughter of a mobster, but she hated seeing Olivia so alone. She had slowly broken through the wall Olivia had put up to protect herself, but she wanted to show her she wasn’t alone anymore. Liza was planning to prove that she was there for Olivia as much as she was for Bastien. Olivia needed to know she could count on someone else besides her surrogate father, and Liza hoped a day of shopping would help.
Olivia rolled her emerald eyes as they headed to the Gallery. “Clothes shopping, really?” Olivia quipped, eyebrow raising in question.
Liza paused, she was sure she could continue bonding with Olivia. “What would you rather do?” She asked, hoping she could salvage the day, not ready to give up winning over the teen yet.
“I could use a new dagger.” Olivia replied with a smirk.
“I’m not just taking you for a new dagger.” Liza replied, earning her a huff and eye roll from Olivia. “I mean, even with taking time in picking the perfect one that barely takes any time. Do you shoot?”
Olivia forcibly rolled her eyes, “of course I can shoot, I just prefer a blade.”
“Okay, then let’s go practice shooting, you can show me how good of a shot you are and then I’ll get you any knife you want.”
“Really?” Olivia questioned, brows knitted together.
Liza knew from her own experiences that Olivia must think her offer too good to be true. One of the reasons Liza hated her father dating was they never cared enough to get to know her and her interests. “Really. How else am I gonna get to know the real Olivia and not the snarky sarcastic girl?” She joked.
“Okay, whatever.” Olivia replied rolling her eyes, a small smile forming on her lips.
Liza smiled to herself, it was small, but she was getting through to Olivia. Maybe they could bond over their shared love and skills of weapons. Maybe this would be the way she could get Olivia to open up and finally accept her.
Present day; Philadelphia Pennsylvania:
Olivia was stunned, frozen in place as she watched Liza fall apart, the strong woman who had been a major part of her life the past ten years due to her own perseverance and determination lying in a crumpled heap on the floor. She never thought she’d see the day when something could defeat Liza, she always was so strong, fighting back, never letting anything keep her down. Olivia wasn’t sure what to do, she’d never seen anyone as battered or broken as Liza was now. Olivia tentatively knelt beside her friend, placing a gentle hand on her back. Olivia’s arm shook as Liza’s body racked with sobs.
Olivia felt lost, unsure of what she could say or do the help Liza in that moment. Everything she said that she had thought would help her stand and fight had done the opposite, bringing Liza to her knees instead. Olivia hated feeling lost, unable to help, but she had to remind herself that in this moment it wasn’t about her, it was about helping Liza. The woman who showed her over and over again she was worth fighting for. The woman who made her see it didn’t matter that her parents could walk away from her, she still had people who cared about her and put her first. She could put her damn pride aside for a minute if it meant helping Liza.
Olivia grabbed her phone, shooting off a single text. SOS, it’s Liza. She held her breath waiting for help to come.
Bastien raced through the halls, his heart beating a mile a minute, the text sending his heart sinking to the pit of his stomach filled with dread. He knew he shouldn’t have let her be, but she pulled away from him whenever he tried to there for her. He hated turning his back on her when he knew how bad she was hurting, but he couldn’t sit there and watch her shut him out, not when he could be figuring out a plan to pay the Rhys family back. In this minute he was regretting every choice he made since Liam came into power.
Bastien’s heart stopped, his breath caught in his throat when he spied Liza sobbing on the floor, Olivia desperately trying to comfort her as her entire body shook. He felt his heart break at the sight, he didn’t know the entire story, but in this moment all he needed to know was she was hurting more than she had ever let on.
“I got her Liv.” Bastien said as he closed the distance, Olivia moving back as he slipped his arms under Liza’s sobbing form.
Liza slumped against his firm chest, her tears quickly soaking his shirt as he carried her back to their room, her bag momentarily forgotten.
Bastien laid her gently on the bed, quickly climbing in, pulling her back towards her. He barely noticed as Olivia dropped her packed bag back into the room, his only thoughts on Liza in that moment. He realized by letting her pull away and then focusing on retribution that he neglected to ensure that she was doing okay. He knew how she worked, knew she must have blamed herself. He silently made a promise that he wouldn’t rest until she knew it wasn’t her fault. He knew it’d take time, they both took a hit that day, but he would remind her how strong she was.
