At Alice's positive answer, Juniper's face lit up, like a kid who just got told they were going to a fancy-shmancy amusement park. It was so uncharacteristically bright and eager that Alice had to fight back a laugh.

  "Perfect!" Juniper clapped her hands together once, bouncing on the balls of her feet before catching herself, clearly trying (and failing) to play it cool again as she cleared her throat dramatically. "I'll text you the details later."

  A beat passed where she hesitated, biting at her bottom lip in an oddly vulnerable way before blurting out: "...Can I hug you again?"

  You have got to be kidding me.

  Alice's heart was an aching mess, her emotions going on a wild rollercoaster, and the idea of another hug was almost more than she could handle. After everything, she should have said no. Should have laughed in Juniper's face and told her it was too little, too late.

  But instead, she took a shaky breath and opened her arms in silent invitation. "...Go ahead.”

  Juniper was careful this time, arms moving slowly to wrap around Alice like a quiet apology. She held her tightly, like she was a delicate piece of glass that might shatter if dropped. It almost broke Alice again. The guilt and shame and pain all rose like a tidal wave, and her fingers gripped the back of Juniper's designer shirt so tightly it almost hurt.

  Juniper froze for a split second, like she hadn’t expected Alice to say that out loud. Then, her grip tightened just slightly, pulling the trembling girl even closer as if trying to shield her from the world.

  For once in their entire history of toxic interactions… there were no words. Only two broken souls clinging together, one begging silently for forgiveness and another who wasn't sure if she could ever give it but couldn't bring herself to push away either.

  And then Juniper whispered something so quiet it was barely audible:

  "...I know."

  That single word broke something inside of Alice's already-fragile heart.

  The dam finally shattered as another wave of sobs hit her, a sudden storm of tears that felt like an unstoppable tsunami as she cried into Juniper's shoulder.

  She was a mess: raw, open, and exposed, but Juniper just held her tighter. Her hands traced careful circles across Alice's trembling back, her touch so gentle it almost made her ache.

  The tears seemed to last an eternity, and through the broken sobs, Alice could hear Juniper's voice whispering soft reassurances through the storm.

  She was too far gone to make out the words but the sound alone was almost…comforting in a way. In the middle of all the pain and hurt, there was something almost maternal about the way the pop star held her, like she was the most fragile thing in the world.

  Finally, the sobs slowed into quiet gasps. Alice's body was exhausted, her everything hurt, and her head was pounding from crying.

  Juniper shifted slightly and Alice forced her eyes open to look at the pop star with a tearstained face.

  She tried to speak, to say something, but the words died in her throat, leaving only a shaky voice that felt like sandpaper.

  Juniper let out a sad little laugh and gently wiped her cheeks with a tender touch that was almost motherly. "You're gonna have to stop crying before dinner, you know that?" she teased gently.

  Alice's eyes widened, dinner? She had completely forgotten about that part in the middle of her emotional breakdown. "You...you still want to go?" she croaked out, voice hoarse from crying so much.

  Juniper gave a slow nod, her smirk returning just slightly, softer now than before but still unmistakably hers. "Yeah," she admitted quietly, brushing another stray tear away with her thumb before adding:

  "Only if you promise not to cry into your appetizer."

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  Alice actually managed a shaky laugh at that, a broken, raspy sound, but still a laugh. "No guarantees," she sniffled, trying to wipe the tears streaks off her cheeks.

  She knew it was insane, that she should be refusing right now and running screaming in the other direction. That this was the worst idea in the history of worst ideas.

  But even as her heart ached, some small, stupid part of her was still looking forward to that stupid dinner.

  Juniper smiled in triumph, her eyes gleaming with a hint of hope. "Oh, come on," she mock-scolded, her voice light with teasing. "Don't go breaking your promises already. C'mon—I'll order anything you want. This hotel has freakin' everything.”

  Alice tried to glare, but the effect was ruined by the fact that she probably looked like a mess: red eyes, swollen lips, and a runny nose. "Anything, huh?" she croaked out hoarsely, trying to ignore the tiny spark of excitement in her aching heart. "…Even ice cream?”

  Juniper's smirk turned downright dangerous as she leaned in just slightly, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper.

  "Even the most expensive, overpriced gold-leafed sundae this place has." She paused for dramatic effect before adding with a playful wink: "...And I won't even laugh when you cry into it."

  Alice could feel her face heating up, part embarrassment, part something else she refused to name. It was insane how easily Juniper flipped between being cruel and teasingly sweet like flipping a coin.

  She opened her mouth to retort but froze when Juniper suddenly reached out and gently tucked another strand of curly black hair behind Alice’s ear again, the touch lingering just long enough for warmth (or maybe panic) to bloom across her cheeks.

  "Stop that," Alice muttered weakly without any real conviction whatsoever.

  Alice’s cheeks burned even hotter at the realization that Juniper had noticed, and worse, that she was now smirking like a cat who’d just cornered a very flustered mouse.

  "Ohhh?" Juniper purred, tilting her head with fake innocence as her fingers trailed down to tap playfully against Alice’s burning skin. "What's this? You don't usually get shy around me."

  A beat of silence where Alice could feel every nerve in her body short-circuiting under the pop star's teasing gaze before,

  "I HATE YOU," she blurted out automatically (a reflex by now), but it lacked any real heat, especially when paired with how hard she was trying not to look away from those damn smug eyes.

  Juniper just laughed and leaned back slightly like nothing had happened at all...but then added softly:

  "...But you'll still go on my date tonight though… right?"

  "Damn it, yes," Alice relented, the defeat in her voice so painfully clear. "Yes, I'll go on your stupid date.”

  …

  Juniper, still in full diva mode despite the emotional whiplash of their earlier conversation, threw an arm around Alice's shoulders with a dramatic sigh. "Ughhhh, you look exhausted," she announced like it was some grand revelation.

  Alice, who had indeed been crying for what felt like hours and whose eyeliner now resembled something out of a horror movie, just gave her a deadpan stare. "No shit."

  Juniper gasped (overacting as usual) before pinching Alice’s cheek lightly, her touch lingering just long enough to be borderline affectionate before pulling away again with an exaggerated pout: "Rude! And here I was about to order us two milkshakes and let you steal my fries."

  Alice blinked at her slowly…then muttered under breath:

  "...You're buying?"

  A pause where Juniper looked downright offended by the implication that she wouldn't pay for herself too until suddenly realizing exactly how this sounded coming from someone who'd spent half today being cruel.

  Her smirk returned tenfold as leaned in close enough whisper:

  "Only if say please~"

  Alice groaned loudly enough to make nearby patrons glance over.

  Juniper's smirk faltered, just for a second. The pop star blinked at Alice, her teasing mask slipping into something more uncertain as she processed the question.

  "You really don't know?" she asked, voice uncharacteristically quiet before letting out an incredulous laugh. She dragged a hand down her face dramatically but there was no real bite to it this time, just exhaustion and maybe…a flicker of guilt?

  Then with another sigh (this one sounding almost tired), Juniper reached over and flicked Alice lightly between eyebrows like some kind of half-assed apology:

  "'Course I'm paying! It’s not like my manager would let me show up anywhere without at least three black cards anyway!"

  Alice stared blankly until finally muttering: "...So you're just flexing on me now?"

  Juniper grinned again, the familiar cocky glint back in place as leaned closer just whisper:

  "Yeah~ And what are you gonna do about it? Cry into your milkshake too?"

  Alice's eyes widened, first in disbelief, then genuine horror as the realization hit her. "You’re buying me a WHAT?!" she shrieked, voice cracking mid-word like a teenage boy going through puberty all over again.

  Juniper cackled, loud and unrepentant, as she watched Alice’s face turn an impressive shade of red from both indignation and sheer panic at the thought of being seen drinking some luxury concoction that probably cost more than her entire wardrobe combined.

  "Ohhhh this is perfect," Juniper wheezed between laughs, wiping imaginary tears from her eyes with one hand while still gripping Alice's shoulder tightly with another to keep her from bolting out of sheer embarrassment: "The great 'I Hate You' speech-maker brought down by...a chocolate milkshake."

  Alice opened her mouth (probably to protest or maybe even scream), but nothing came out except a strangled noise before finally settling on weakly punching Juniper’s arm instead, which only made the star laugh harder.

  Somewhere behind them? A waiter dropped his tray loudly which snapped everyone back to reality…which was when Noelle chose that exact moment to walk into the lounge room, looking exhausted herself.