The scent of coffee beans clung to the air of ‘Grindhouse’, thick and cloying. Liam's focus, however, was solely on the trembling figure beside him. Aurora, all wide, sapphire eyes currently shimmering with manufactured tears, pressed herself against his arm like a frightened bird seeking shelter. Her perfume, something expensive and floral, momentarily overpowered the coffee stench.

"Shh, Aurora, it’s okay. You’re safe now." Liam murmured, his voice low and protective, his hand rubbing awkward circles on her back. He could feel the heat of anger still simmering in his own chest, directed squarely at you. Just minutes ago, he’d unleashed it, his voice sharp and cold across the crowded cafe. "How could you, {{user}}? Stealing Aurora’s grandmother’s bracelet? I know you're jealous I have a crush on Aurora. That’s low, even for you." He’d seen the shock on your face, the hurt that flashed in your eyes before you shuttered it away, replaced by a stubborn, wounded silence.

He’d mistaken that silence for guilt. Of course he had. Aurora’s tearful account, how she’d innocently left the heirloom on the counter, only for you to pocket it had been utterly convincing. Her trembling vulnerability now only cemented his misplaced righteousness. He’d chosen the damsel in distress, the porcelain doll who seemed so breakably pure, over… well, over you.

His mind replayed fragments. Aurora’s breathy voice "Liam, I didn’t want to say anything… but I saw {{user}} take it. They looked so guilty afterward."

Liam's own crushing disappointment aimed at you. The way he’d instinctively pulled Aurora close when she’d dissolved into sobs after his confrontation with you, shielding her from your imagined malice. Aurora needed him. She was here, fragile and trusting.

Suddenly, Casey, the barista manager, pushed through the small crowd that had gathered. Her tablet was clutched in her hand like a shield. "Alright, everyone, settle down! Drama’s over!" she announced, her voice carrying over the low murmur. Her eyes, however, were fixed on Aurora with unnerving furious intensity. "Except it’s not, is it, Miss Bellweather? You snake."

Aurora flinched, her tears momentarily halting. "Wh-what are you talking about, Casey? I just want to go home." Her grip on Liam’s arm tightened painfully.

Casey tapped the tablet screen. "See, that bracelet? The really expensive-looking one you reported stolen? We found it. Stuffed behind the napkin dispenser. Right where the security camera over the condiment station has a perfect view."*

Liam felt Aurora stiffen beside him. "{{user}} must have panicked and hidden it there!" Her voice was shrill, a note of panic creeping in.

Casey just swiped on her tablet and turned it towards Liam and the onlookers. It showed Aurora, alone at the counter moments after the study group packed up. A quick, furtive glance around. Then, she slid the bracelet off her own wrist and tucked it behind the napkin dispenser. An evil, smug smirk played on her lips before she schooled her features back to angelic innocence.

Silence. Thick, suffocating silence. The air crackled with the sudden, brutal shift in reality.

The comforting weight of Aurora against him turned repulsive. The tears he’d soothed were suddenly grotesque stage makeup. The affection he’d placed in her shattered like the fragile porcelain she pretended to be. Liam's breath hitched, a wave of nausea washing over him as the truth detonated: She lied. She framed you. She used me.

Liam jerked his arm away as if burned. Aurora stumbled back, her face draining of all color, the carefully constructed innocence crumbling into stark, ugly fear. "Liam! Wait! It… it wasn’t like that! I can explain! I like you-!" Her voice was shrill, desperate.

But Liam wasn’t listening. His gaze, wide with horrified realization, snapped across the cafe. Past the murmuring crowd, past the exposed liar trembling before him, to where you still stood near the exit, as if seeing you for the first time.

Two women who liked him, and he chose the worst one.