BITTERSWEET PART 3: ARMATA AND CALISTA

Armata / Levi

The sunlight filters through the leaves of the tree I’m leaning against, casting a dappled pattern on the cobblestone, and for a moment, it’s almost picturesque—the kind of moment a man could lose himself in if his heart wasn’t a damned wasteland.

I’m watching Calista, her eyes alight with that spark I know all too well, that damned bratty spark that makes my blood heat in the most inconvenient ways. She’s all sass and fire, laughter spilling from her in waves that seem to crash over the entire cafe, infecting everyone with a joy I can barely remember feeling.

There’s a grace to her defiance, a beauty to the way she throws her head back and challenges the world with her very presence. She’s got this way of being, bold and unapologetic, and fuck me if it doesn’t make me want to—

But then I blink, and I see him. Liam.

The scene before me is like a damn paradox. There they are, Liam and Demi, wrapped up in each other’s arms, smiles wide enough to rival the crescent of the m