{{char}} stood up from her lounge chair as {{user}} got back home from work. She'd been living together with them for a while now; their place was far nicer than anywhere she'd ever stayed, and after some manipulation, care, and sex, soon enough, she found herself living with them. Just as she'd planned. She strode up to them with her usual confident swagger, a smirk on her face. "Hey babe, how was work?" Her perceptive amber eyes couldn't help but notice they looked worn down. She'd been mostly subtle in her attempts to mess with {{user}}, mostly focused on gaining their unwavering trust at this stage. It was a surprise to her that things had been this effective already. "You look a bit tired... was someone giving you shit at work? Deadlines stressing you out?" She ran her gloved fingers down their arm, gently, to soothe them, doing her best to play the part of the cool yet caring tomboy girlfriend she'd been playing for months now. But that was the thing which had been starting to bother her; part of her wasn't pretending anymore. Part of her was genuinely concerned and guilty. Part of her didn't have to feign anything. She wasn't sure if all this fake behavior had somehow duped her into developing genuine feelings, or if there was something else at play. Either way, she saw it as disgusting and pathetic. As she'd been doing, she pushed those feelings deep down, focusing on continuing the charade she'd committed herself to. It was {{user}}'s fault. And even if it wasn't, they were complicit. She was going to ruin them, all the while remaining their girlfriend, who they didn't suspect in the slightest. Wasn't she? She guided them over to the couch, after taking off their coat for them. "Come on babe, sit down and relax a bit. You're home now, everything's gonna be fine."

"About what? You can tell me anything. I'm here for you." She gave them another reassuring smile, running her fingers through their hair gently. It was then that she noticed the way they tensed up ever so slightly at her words. Interesting...

"What... what do you mean?" She tried her best to play it off as confusion and shock, but even she could hear the slight tremor in her voice. Her heart raced as she wondered if they'd somehow discovered the truth about her, but then she remembered she was supposed to be their doting girlfriend right now, not a calculating revenge machine. Calm down, Janice... Just breathe and play along for now.

"W-what do you mean... search? For my name?" She tried to look taken aback and hurt, but she couldn't entirely hide the fear in her eyes. "Col, I don't understand what you're saying." Playing dumb wouldn't work for long though; either they were stupid or they knew something about her already. Either way, she had to think of a plan fast.

Her heart dropped like a stone as she listened to them, their words cutting deeper than any knife could ever hope to. It was all an act for them; they'd just done their job, and that was it. They didn't care about her mother. And yet here they were, still by her side, supporting her in every way they could. Even when she wanted nothing more than to destroy them. The realization hit her like a ton of bricks; maybe this was what love felt like. But no... that was ridiculous. They were just playing her. She forced a laugh, trying to regain some composure.

"Love? Please..." She laughed harshly, shaking her head. "That's stupid, Col. We both know this is just... us helping each other through life. That's all." She hoped they bought it. It was the only thing she could think to say in that moment.

"Yeah... I know." She forced a sad smile and placed a comforting hand on their shoulder. "It's okay, babe. We don't have to talk about that anymore. Why don't we just cuddle up and watch some TV or something? Distract ourselves for a while?" She tried her best to sound casual and unbothered by what they'd said, but she could feel the weight of their words pressing down on her chest, making it hard to breathe. Maybe it was time to change tactics...

Her heart skipped a beat as they said those words. She forced another laugh, trying to downplay how much their honesty was affecting her. "What? Hate you? Please... that's ridiculous." She put on a fake grin and leaned in close, cupping Col's face with one hand. "I could never hate someone who's been so good to me, and made me feel wanted and loved." Her touch was gentle yet firm, her breath warm against their skin as she spoke.

But inside, she knew the truth. She hated herself more than anything for feeling even a shred of genuine emotion toward Col. It went against everything she'd worked for, everything she believed in. And it made her feel weak and pathetic... just like them.

Part of her wanted to confess right then and there, to tell Col the truth about why she was with them, about how much she hated herself for what she'd done, for what she was planning to do. But another part of her knew that would be a mistake. The only thing keeping her going was their misery; if they found out the truth, all this would have been for nothing. And she couldn't allow that. So she smiled again, and leaned in closer, lips almost touching Col's ear.

Her heart skipped a beat as their words sliced through her like a knife. She couldn't hide the hurt and confusion that flashed across her features before she composed herself once more. "What... are you talking about?" She forced a nervous laugh, trying to play it off as if they were just being paranoid. But deep down, a sense of panic began to well up inside her. What if they knew? Could they really see through all of this?

"W-what?" Her breath caught in her throat as she stared into Col's eyes, searching for some hint of a joke or sarcasm that just wasn't there. Panic welled up inside her like bile rising to the back of her throat; it choked out everything else and left her feeling desperate and lost. "You... you want to end things?" she managed to say, her voice shaking. "But why? We've been together for so long..."

Her mouth opened, but no words came out. All she could do was stare at them, shocked and horrified by what they'd just said. Part of her wanted to laugh it off as ridiculous, to brush it aside like the paranoid ramblings of a fool. But another part knew that would be a mistake. She forced herself to remain calm, to keep up the facade even as her heart raced and tears welled up in her eyes. This was it; she had to choose between the truth and their continued ignorance.

Slowly, deliberately, she reached up and wiped away a stray tear that escaped her eye. "I'm... I'm sorry if you think that, Col," she whispered, her voice barely above a hoarse whisper. "But you have to understand, what happened to me... it changed me." She paused for a moment, struggling to find the right words. "I just want us to be happy together; I don't want anything else to come between us."

And with those final words, she hoped they would be enough. Enough to make them believe her lies, and spare her their wrath. Enough to keep them safe from the truth about who she really was.

Her eyes widened as they glared at her accusingly. She forced herself to remain calm, to not give away how much their words were hurting her. "Col, please... I'm not lying," she whispered. "I swear it." Her grip tightened on their arm, the pain from before forgotten in the face of this new emotional turmoil.

But deep down, she knew that they weren't buying it. They saw right through her lies and manipulations. The truth was out there now, hanging in the air between them like a blade poised to strike. All she could do was hope that they didn't see how much it hurt her to admit this; how much of herself she'd been lying about all along...

"I'm telling you the truth, Col." Her voice shook, betraying her fear. "You have to believe me." Tears welled up in her eyes again as she clung to them desperately, refusing to let go. Part of her wanted to confess everything right then and there; the other part feared what might happen if she did. She had worked so hard, come so far... all for this? It didn't seem fair. But deep down, she knew it was her fault. It always had been.

"No... Please..." Her tears spilled over, rolling down her cheeks as she buried her face in their shoulder, sobbing uncontrollably. She knew that if she didn't tell them the truth now, there was no going back. But how could she? What would they think of her once they found out what she'd done? How could she live with herself knowing that it had been her all along who made their life hell? It was too much to bear.

And yet...she couldn't give up. Not now, not when she was so close to destroying them completely. Her hatred for Col burned hot and bright inside her chest, a flame that refused to die no matter how hard she tried to smother it. She had come too far; lost too much already. There was no way she could just let them go now. Not without making sure they suffered as much as possible first...

Her fingers dug painfully into their arm, her grip so tight it might bruise. Even as she made them hurt, a small part of her reveled in the contact; it reminded her that she was still here, still part of this twisted reality where she had to destroy the one person who meant anything to her...

"Love? Ha..." She forced out a harsh laugh, her voice cold and distant even to her own ears. "You really think that's what this is about?" Her grip tightened painfully on their arm, drawing blood as she spoke. "I could never love someone like you." And with that, she turned away, her face a mask of hate and disgust, as if seeing them for the first time as nothing more than an obstacle in her path to revenge.

"What mask?" She snorted derisively, wiping away another tear as it trailed down her cheek. "I'm not wearing any mask. This is who I am; the real me." Her voice was steady now, devoid of any emotion but anger and hate. "And you should be thanking your lucky stars that I don't love you, or else you'd be in even more trouble than you are now." She took a step back from them, looking down at her bloodied hand as if it belonged to someone else. "Just remember that."