xxDustNight88 came up with the idea to write 28 drabbles inspired by fluffy, romantic prompts that she found for the month of February 2023. After consulting with her and opting not to give my muse - who has been on vacation - a choice in the matter, we talked about me writing a series of break-up drabbles. We all know that life isn't all fluff and romance, so I wanted to support the heartbreak that sometimes happens, especially this time of year. dumplingsjinson compiled a list of prompts meant to inspire "it's not you, it's me" scenarios between characters and posted it to Tumblr.

Once I found the list of prompts that I liked, I reached out to people who follow me on social media as members of my fanfiction Facebook group, followers of my fanfiction page on Facebook, followers of my fanfiction Instagram, Tumblr followers, and people on one of the discord servers I'm a member of to prompt me potential pairings for which prompt they would like to see written.

So, you will see many fandoms if you follow this series on Ao3 from now until the end of the month. There will be some days with multiple stories posted so I can use all of the prompts I found - if the muse decides to cooperate. Or if you just find yourself here for one of the stories because it falls into a fandom or pairing that you enjoy reading. I will apologize in advance for any heartbreak you may find because I have broken my heart many times while writing the stories for this series on Ao3. If you are following me on FanFiction, you will see the stories as individual stories posted throughout the month with the name Falling Starrs before the title of the actual story.

According to Urban Dictionary, a breakup is defined as "when two people have to let each other go. Despite the fact that one of them loves the other one truly. The girl or the guy in your case, decides that the two of you are not compatible for each other. Hopefully the two of the people can remain friends, though that is hard for guys to do, because we hold on. But always remember, there are more than six billion people on this planet. So though you may not want to hear it, the chances of this person being the one, are less than winning the lottery. I know it's tough but you have to move on after a break up.."

I hope you enjoy this heartbreaking adventure that we are about to embark on!

Happy reading!

Love always,

~starr

Oliver stood outside the pub, contemplating whether or not he wanted to address this now or wait until after Marcus had come home for the night. He could see Marcus sitting at the bar, nursing a bottle of beer and making small talk with someone sitting next to him. Oliver could feel the twinge of jealousy raging its head in the back of his mind. No matter what he did to suppress the feeling, it always found a way to seep through and ruin any moment.

Like this morning, when he rolled over and picked up Marcus' phone by mistake. The soft jab of jealousy quickly turned into a stabbing pain when Oliver recognized a familiar name above a very flirtatious message written underneath. His nostrils flared as he unlocked Marcus' phone and skimmed over the messages.

Oliver locked the phone and set it back on the nightstand when he heard the shower cut off. He rolled over and pulled the blanket up over his face. Closing his eyes, Oliver exhaled sharply and pretended to drift back off to sleep. Marcus was quiet as he made his way around the room, gathering his belongings before leaving for the day.

Oliver froze when he felt Marcus' breath on his temple when Marcus kissed him before leaving.

"I'll be at the Leaky around four if you want to join me for a drink," Marcus called, pulling the door closed behind him.

Oliver pulled the covers away from his face, slamming them on Marcus' side of the bed, and let out a huff. "You've got to fucking kidding me," he growled, pushing himself up from the bed and heading to the loo to grab a shower.

Pulling his eyes away from the window, Oliver glanced down at the ring on his left hand and shook his head. He had a right to know the truth, and he should give Marcus a chance to explain before he jumps to any irrational decisions based on his opinion of a situation. Oliver took a deep breath and pushed the door to the pub open. It was now or never.

The crowd's roar in the bar drowned out the thoughts playing in Oliver's head. He was grateful for the distraction as he made quick work of the space between the door and the spot where Marcus was sitting. He took up the empty stool beside his husband and flagged down the bartender, ordering a firewhisky.

"That's unusual for you so early in the night," Marcus teased, squeezing Oliver's knee as he leaned over to kiss Oliver. He was surprised when Oliver turned his face away. "What was that for?"

"I think you know why," Oliver hissed, nodding his thanks to the bartender and lifting the glass of amber liquid to his lips. With one swig, the glass was empty and burned its way down his throat. "How was your date with Percy?"

"How did you know about that?" Marcus asked, lowering his voice as he furrowed his brow. "It wasn't a -"

Oliver cut him off. "Save the lies. I saw the messages on your phone this morning while you were in the shower."

"You read the messages on my phone?" Marcus asked, gritting his teeth. "Why the hell would you do that?"

"Because the damn buzzing woke me up," Oliver replied, flagging down the bartender for another drink. Upon receiving it, he lifted the glass from the bar and got down off the stool. "We should probably continue this conversation somewhere a little more private."

Marcus nodded, picking up his bottle and moving to stand next to Oliver. "Lead the way."

Oliver moved through the crowd towards a door at the back of the bar. He pushed it open and flipped on the light, peeking his head inside to make certain that they would be alone. He held the door open for Marcus to slip inside and followed after him. He took a long sip of his firewhiskey and set the glass on the small table as he watched Marcus pace the room, finishing off the last of his beer.

"So our wedding vows meant nothing to you?" Oliver asked, crossing his arms over his chest. He watched intently as Marcus moved to set the empty bottle on the table and took a step back, being sure to keep a small amount of distance between them.

"I didn't promise you a forever," Marcus said, shrugging his shoulders as he tucked his hands into his pockets. "I promised you this lifetime."

Oliver shook his head, biting down on his lip to keep from yelling. The nonchalant nature of Marcus' response set his blood ablaze, and all he wanted to do was scream. Unfortunately, he knew that screaming wouldn't do him any good. "Yet you couldn't even fulfill that," Oliver replied.

"If you are looking for an apology, then you won't get one," Marcus said, shaking his head. "The only thing I'm sorry for is how you found out."

Oliver nodded his head slowly. "Me too," he sighed. He grabbed his empty glass off the table and made his way toward the door, leaving Marcus behind in the empty room.

Maybe one day, they'd be able to move past this, but for now, they would go their separate ways.