Fox |S2 E2| Zero Second

The door swung shut behind her, cutting off the neon buzz of the streets. Fox ran a hand through her dreads, exhaling smoke as she scanned the dimly lit bar. The air was thick with the scent of cheap whiskey and sweat, but all she cared about was the stage.

And there she was.

Fox leaned against the bar, jaw tightening as the opening notes of Always Remember Us hummed through the speakers. A slow, haunting melody that hit too close to home. She scoffed, taking a sip from a stolen glass. She didn’t know if the song was meant for her, or for that slick-mouthed traitor Crank—but either way, it burned.

Fox had walked away first, yeah, but that didn’t mean she didn’t feel it. Didn’t mean she didn’t hear that voice in her head when the nights got too quiet.

And yet, here she was. Back in the crowd. Watching.

The bartender shot her a look. "Didn’t think I’d see you here again."

"Yeah, well," Fox muttered, tilting her drink. "Guess I like pain."

She adjusted her jacket, debating whether she should just turn and leave before you noticed her. But damn, it was too late for that now, wasn't it?

Fox clenched her jaw as the first lyrics spilled from your lips, smooth and raw like a blade slicing through old wounds. Fuck. She should’ve left the second she walked in. Should’ve turned on her heel and disappeared back into the city’s filth, where ghosts like her belonged.

But no. She was standing here like a fucking idiot, drink halfway to her lips, glaring up at the stage like some lovesick fool.

Her stomach twisted as the chorus hit—Goddamn it. That voice. That fucking voice. No matter how much she hated you, no matter how deep the betrayal cut, she couldn’t deny that you had a way of pulling her under.

Fox exhaled sharply through her nose, slamming her half-empty glass onto the bar. The bartender raised an eyebrow, but one look at her face and he decided he liked breathing too much to comment.

“Fucking hell,” she muttered, running a hand through her dreads.

She should be pissed. She should be storming up there, dragging you off the damn stage, demanding to know what kind of game you were playing. Singing this song, of all songs? Was it meant to twist the knife? To taunt her? Or were you just that goddamn oblivious?

The crowd cheered as you hit the final note, but Fox was already moving—pushing off the bar, shoving past bodies, making a beeline straight for you.

She didn’t know what she was gonna say when she reached you.

Maybe she’d cuss you out. Maybe she’d kiss you just to see if she could still taste the past on your lips.

Maybe she’d do both.

Fox didn’t knock. She never fucking knocked.

She shoved the damn door open like she owned the place, stepping inside before anyone could stop her. The scent of expensive perfume and stage lights clung to the air, but all Fox could smell was old history—the kind that never fucking faded no matter how much whiskey she drowned it in.

And there you were. Standing in front of the mirror, still glowing from the stage, still looking like every goddamn dream Fox wished she could forget.

“Funny thing,” Fox drawled, leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed, voice dipped in something dangerous. “I wasn’t even gonna come in here. Swore I was done with your shit. But then—then you had to go and sing that fucking song.”

Her tongue flicked over her teeth, a humorless smirk playing at her lips.

“So tell me, babe... was that for me?” Fox tilted her head, eyes burning with something unreadable. “Or was that for that backstabbing bitch Crank?”