something more

midnight confession

Midnight Confessions

The masquerade was supposed to end in laughter and glitter, not broken glass. But as the final song faded, tension hung heavier than the chandeliers.

Teny slipped out of the ballroom, clutching her sketchbook like a lifeline. The cool night air wrapped around her, the courtyard empty except for the sound of fountains trickling. She pressed her back against the stone wall, pulling in shaky breaths.

Her mask dangled from her fingers, useless now. She couldn’t hide anymore, not from them, not from herself.

Footsteps echoed.

Luca emerged first, still smirking, though his jaw was tight beneath the mask. He slid his hands into his pockets like he had all the time in the world. “You were incredible out there, you know. The way everyone watched you, watched us.”

Teny shook her head. “Luca, stop. This isn’t a game.”

His smile faltered. For once, his voice softened. “It’s not a game to me. Not when it comes to you.”

Before she could respond, another shadow cut across the courtyard. Matteo. His mask was gone, revealing eyes dark as midnight storms.

“You don’t belong here with him.” His words landed like steel, sharp and unyielding. “Not Romano. Not ever.”

Luca stepped forward, positioning himself between them, protective, defiant. “And who decided that? You? Last I checked, she isn’t your possession, De Luca.”

Matteo’s glare could have scorched stone. “You don’t understand what you’re doing.”

“Enlighten me,” Luca shot back.

The air snapped between them, charged and dangerous.

Teny’s voice cracked through the silence. “Enough!” Her heart pounded so hard it hurt. “You two don’t get to decide for me. You don’t get to stand here, throwing your egos around like, like I’m some prize.”

The words hung in the night, shaking even her.

Luca turned, his expression wounded but steady. “Then tell us, Teny. Who are you choosing?”

Her breath hitched. Matteo’s gaze bore into hers, fierce and desperate. Luca’s eyes burned with something softer, but no less consuming.

For a heartbeat, she wished the earth would swallow her whole. Because the truth was terrifying. Whoever she chose, someone would break. Someone would bleed.

She swallowed hard. “I-i-i can’t.”

The silence that followed was heavier than shouting.

Matteo stepped back, jaw tightening, his voice low. “Then I’ll wait. But don’t expect him to.” His eyes cut to Luca, cold and final, before he disappeared into the shadows.

Luca lingered, his smirk gone. He looked at her for a long time, searching, hurting. “You don’t get forever to decide, Teny. Hearts don’t wait forever.”

And then he, too, was gone.

Teny stood alone in the courtyard, the echoes of their voices haunting her. She clutched her sketchbook until her knuckles went white, whispering to herself the truth she couldn’t tell them:

That both boys had already claimed pieces of her heart...

and she didn’t know how to take them back.