Just a little something i needed to get out. I got the idea a while ago :)
The aftermath studio looked a lot different in the night. The lack of lighting gave it an eerie atmosphere, more suited to bats and nocturnal animals, than an ambitious girl with mocha skin stained with silent tears.
Courtney sat alone on the couch, still fully engulfed by the sadness brought on when the first boy she ever loved took her heart and smashed it into a million pieces. The look he gave her in season one was now directed to a girl with blue hair and pale skin. She puts up an angry, revenge-ridden facade to please viewers and hide from her feelings, but as the sun sets she lets it fall down in an ocean of tears. It hurt too much.
The rough wood brushed against her soft hands, the skull carved into it staring up at her, reminding Courtney once again of the love they once shared but will never get back. When he carved it for her, everything was so simple. There was only one season of reality TV, no lawsuits or incredibly dangerous planes. How badly she wanted that time back. It was gone, gone a kiss between a punk and a goth was shared in a bathroom confessional.
The night crept on, the cold Hawaii wind rushing against her exposed skin. The uncomfortable darkness was all that kept Courtney company, until a hand on her shoulder jolted her up with a fright.
"Ahhhhhh! Who ever you are, I can sue you so-"
Courtney turned around and her eyes met with a bright shade of emerald and shaggy raven hair. The boy carried a torch, which illuminated Courtney's tears on her cheeks. He too, had a look of sadness etched on his face. Courtney hurried to rebuild her wall.
"What the hell are you doing here Trent?" Courtney asked, slowly regaining her mask to hide her previous vulnerability
"You were crying over Duncan weren't you?" Trent's words caught Courtney off guard, and her wall instantly crumbled. As soon as Duncan's name left his lips, Courtney's face softened into sorrow once more. She sat down once again, her back facing Trent.
All the words in the world couldn't make an adequate reply, so Courtney left the question unanswered, the incomplete sentence lingering in the air. Her silence was all Trent needed, as he sat down next to her, the cold leather sending shivers up his spine.
"You know, when I found out Gwen asked my team to vote me off, I went to cry in the aftermath studio too."
Courtney's head turned around slowly, emerald and charcoal meeting once more. Trent continued.
"I used to bring my guitar with me. All I'd do was play a G chord over and over. I just sat there the whole night thinking of Gwen. I gave her everything, even a better chance at the million, and still I wound up alone." Trent stared deep into Courtney's eyes, seeing for the first time a scared girl with a broken heart, not a pushy girl with high expectations.
Courtney sat in silence, still taking in what Trent had said. The sun was shyly peeking over the horizon now.
"I" Courtney moved her thumb over the skull in her hands, immersing herself in the painful memories once more. She closed her eyes, the wall slowly making its way back up again.
"I get that you got dumped ok? But, but, it's not the same! I got dumped for another girl! You have no idea how hard it is to see the person you love kiss someone else! You have no right to just come barging in on me here! Do you have to invade people's privacy like that?"
"Courtney," Trent started softly, but Courtney continued to yell at Trent.
"Why don't you just go read your fan mail? I heard getting dumped has made you a real hit with the ladies! Why are you even here? I bet your over that gothic bitch and swimming in your pool of fan girls every day! Or do you only do nine at at time?"
"Courtney!" Trent's voice rose as she mentioned Gwen, however his anger remained at a minimum
"Just go! Go get some sleep so you can wake up bright and early for all of your stupid admirers. Go and make a new hit single with your other talent less band mates! Go! Go!"
Before Courtney say another word Trent pulled her into a tight embrace, with the CIT still screaming into his chest.
"Let go of me! Let go! Let go! Ahhhhhh" Courtney struggled against Trent's strong hold, until her anger shattered into heart wrenching sobs, leaving Trent stroking the top of the brunette's head gently.
"Shhh. It's ok," Trent whispered calmly, his right hand still on top of Courtney's brown hair. She continued to cry into his chest. Trent spoke softly.
"I don't mean to offend you, but you seem to be forgetting who you're talking to. I love Gwen. I've loved her since I arrived on that dock for the first time, but as season two started I realised she didn't love me back. Sure, she liked me for a few months. But not love. Not the love I feel for her." Trent's words caused Courtney's tears to subside enough for her to speak.
"H-how do you do it?" Courtney asked, her face still buried in Trent's green shirt.
"How do you look at Gwen looking at Duncan instead of you without bursting into tears? How do you cope with the fact t-that the one you love is in love with someone else? How did you manage to talk to Gwen, as if none of this ever happened on that other aftermath show? How Trent?" Courtney's questions caused a smile to curve Trent's lips. A tear found it's way down his cheek.
"I'll have to admit, it still hurts. But as time went by, I learned to let go. Sure I'll always feel something for her, and I know you'll always feel something for Duncan, but to see her smile makes me happy, even if it's not with me."
Courtney's body relaxed in Trent's arms. They remained in that position for a while. For the first time since Greece, she felt safe, warm, loved. Her tears dampened Trent's pyjamas as she pulled her face away to look deep into Trent's eyes.
"Thank you," Courtney whispered.
Trent stared back at Courtney's face, studying every line, every freckle, every tear. She was beautiful. He never realised before, but Courtney was beautiful. He smiled.
Courtney continued the comfortable silence. Not until now had she even thought of confiding in Trent. Trent. Sweet, understanding Trent. He knew her, even though they barely talked. She felt secure in his arms, and lost in his deep pool of emerald. She smiled back at him, the first genuine smile to grace her lips in a long time.
Trent leaned in slowly, hoping he wouldn't get a slap to the face in return. Instead he felt Courtney's soaked lips meet his own. His hand moved up to cup her dampened cheek as all of Courtney's tears and heartache was poured into that one soft, graceful kiss.
Duncan broke Courtney's heart in two, but she found the other half that night.