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Riya couldn’t sleep. She thought she was used to the snoring from the men in that shitty tent by now. Or, maybe it wasn’t because of the snoring. Maybe it was the bright yellow walls of the tent. She hated those. She hated her team as well..or..hate was a bit harsh, maybe she didn’t hate her team. Maybe she just hated Yul. She noticed some of the things he did. The way he treated his girlfriend. The poor girl, she was so sweet. It must suck to be stuck with such a shitty man.
Thinking of Grett, Riya sat up, and noticed her presence missing. That’s weird. While being at the camp, she noticed how Grett was typically one of the first to fall asleep. It didn’t seem like she was tonight. Being closer to the edge of the tent, Riya pushed herself out of her sleeping bag, before standing and peeking out of the tent’s entrance, looking to see if Grett was nearby.
Bingo. Right on the money, Riya was pretty smart. She liked to think that she knew a lot about her competitors after all. She had to know things to manipulate them. This was, actually pretty weird though. Grett seemed to have a grip on her thighs, squeezing them for a reason Riya couldn’t understand. She wanted to not bother her, to go back to the tent and just lay down, to pretend she saw nothing. But..Grett looked so sad. She shouldn’t care about that. She couldn’t care about Grett. The Grett who gave her dirty looks. The Grett who was obsessed with Yul’s affection. The Grett she only wanted to impress.
“Grett..?” Riya called out. Shit. Shit. Shit. Why did she say something? Grett’s head practically snapped towards her. Riya went red in the cheeks out of pure embarrassment of being spotted, even if it was her own fault. Riya wanted to yell at her for embarrassing her but..she couldn’t. Especially not after seeing those watery eyes of Grett. What was she supposed to do in this situation? She never comforted people, at least not anymore. Especially not when this distracted, god, how could anyone be that pretty anyways?
“Riya..? You’re still awake?” Grett mumbled, her voice shaking, pulling Riya back into reality. She blinked for another moment, trying to figure out exactly what to say to the other women before opening her mouth to reply.
“Are you okay..?” Right in for the kill. She wasn’t sure if that was the best thing to say, Grett didn’t seem to look any happier, instead her mouth moved, seemingly ready to reply, but nothing came out. Well, nothing besides a whole lot of tears. Grett seemed to be fully breaking down. She was one of those people, Riya supposed. A person who bottles it all in until it breaks. Riya just moved towards Grett, sitting beside her and looking at her with a pitiful expression.
“Can I touch you?” Riya suggested, her voice less harsh than it was usually, as she took on a softer tone while speaking to the younger woman. Riya was met with a nod by her, and so she placed her arm on Grett’s back, slowly rubbing it in an attempt to comfort her.
Riya was a bit disappointed with herself for showing weakness. Seriously, she wasn’t supposed to be going all soft now, she came here to win, not to play best friend with some douchebag’s girlfriend. But..she seriously couldn’t help it. Anyone would feel attracted to Grett, her hair was dark and enchanting, her face was shaped nicely, she had the cutest eyes, wide and doe-like, and her lips seemed so soft, she wanted nothing more in that moment to press her own lips against Grett’s. She wasn’t gay though, definitely not. Riya just had to show appreciation where it was due. Or..maybe her feelings for Grett were less heterosexual than the average person’s.
Either way, Riya would think about that later. Grett seemed to stop crying, instead she had the occasional sniffle accompanied by a wipe of her eyes. Riya kept her hand on Grett’s back, not wanting to remove it. She was seriously jealous of Yul, I mean, he could do this whenever, and he didn’t. Speaking of Yul..Riya had a few questions.
“So..what even happened? I bet it was that douche Yul.” Maybe she shouldn’t have called Grett’s boyfriend a douche to her face, but Riya couldn’t help it as she finished her questions with a scoff. Grett looked less than pleased with her second question, but sighed, before turning and looking into Riya’s eyes. God, Riya loved those eyes.
“He’s not a douche…! But..yeah. He’s just so insensitive sometimes..! I mean, when strangers online say shit about me, fine! But my own BOYFRIEND!?” Grett looked less upset, and instead just straight up mad as she ranted about Yul, she had a pout on her lip that Riya thought was the cutest thing, but definitely not the most important.
“What did he even say?” Riya questioned, raising an eyebrow. Knowing Yul, it was probably something really shitty. Love was a funny thing, Yul could do whatever he wanted, and Grett would still love him, what a guy. In the most derogatory way she could imagine. She could take Yul being an asshole to her after all, Riya knew how to defend herself. Grett? It wasn’t that Grett couldn’t defend herself, but because Grett loved him so much that she wouldn’t.
“He keeps talking about my body, and I hate it! He makes me feel so bad about myself sometimes, but he can be so sweet..!” Grett continued to rant, and Riya just wanted to roll her eyes. Not at Grett, but instead at the audacity of Yul. Riya realized what she had to do, she couldn’t let Grett suffer in this relationship anymore. She couldn’t let Yul ruin her safe image. She had to get them to break up, she wanted Grett to leave him, not only for her, but also herself. She realized. She wants Grett.
“Grett. No. Don’t defend that asshole. He does nothing except for step on you all the time like you’re nothing to him! He’s awful, and you deserve way better than a guy like him! There are people that would kill for a girl like you, and he is NOT one of them!” Riya yelled, maybe she was harsh. She wasn’t made to be kind after all. But Grett didn’t seem mad, actually, she smiled at Riya.
“You think so?” She whispered, a smile on her face. It was a soft smile, not like the nervous smile she has set as a practical default look. Riya blushed, she was so pretty. How the fuck was anyone this gorgeous???? “Y’know..sometimes you look at me like you’re one of those people..” Grett giggled, her cheeks lighting up a rosy pink. Riya didn’t know what to say, but it didn’t seem like she had to.
Grett laid her head against Riya’s shoulder, looking at the darkened empty campfire, the only remains being burnt out sticks and blackened charcoal.
“I wasn’t sure before. I was so caught up in being with Yul. But..I’ve thought of you. Multiple times actually…and maybe I never was in love with Yul. Maybe it was never him I really wanted. Maybe it was you.” Grett said, that same smile remained on her face.
“I think I love you, Riya.” Grett confessed, Riya stared down at her. She had only one way to respond.
“I..love you too Grett.”
Nothing else needed to be said. Those lips were as soft as Riya thought they would be, especially when pressed up against her own.