taffytm

[taffytm]

She knew it was going to be hard. It was going to be rough as hell breaking up with Randy after so many years together, after a lifelong friendship that ran underneath their relationship and a life where they were so intertwined from their shared home to their career to their entire friend group. Tiffany didn’t feel ready right now to do it, but she knew that once she steeled herself, she would be. And she knew that by the end she was going to be okay, even if she wasn’t right now. She told Dewey as much with a nod as he asked her, answering with a hint of irony in her voice, “Yeah. I’m a tough bitch.”

Letting out a deep sigh, Tiff knew it was time to get up and get out of here. The longer she was here with Dewey, rubbing her back and kissing her hand, the less she wanted to leave, and that was dangerous where Randy could still come out of the ballroom and find them any time. She didn’t want anything to happen between the two men, which seemed inevitable if her almost-ex-boyfriend found them like this. “I think I’m gonna go find Candice and stay with her tonight. Thanks for being here for me.”

Finally being able to kiss Tiffany after so much waiting was an incredible feeling — like coming up for fresh air after being stuck underwater. He'd been drowning all this time, between the bombing and the heartache and the loneliness, and Tiffany was here to save him, finally. In a sense, they were saving each other, and maybe that was what made them so special. Even if they had technically kissed when he was in Randy's body, even if they'd kissed before when they had hooked up in the past, this was more special than any of those moments. It was the rainbow after the storm, at least he hoped so for Tiffany's sake; she didn't deserve to be hurt anymore.

Dewey wished he never had to pull away from the kiss, but there was an unspoken feeling that there would be plenty more in store in the future. Instead, he squeezed her hand too, with a small smile to remind her that it would be okay. I'm gonna break up with him would normally be a sad statement, but Dewey's heart was doing backflips in his chest at the news. He nodded his head in understanding, wanting to celebrate at the thought of them finally being together soon, but struggling to do so with seeing how hurt she still was. As her fingers pressed into her temples, Dewey brought his other arm up to rub her back soothingly. "Take all the time you need, I'm not going anywhere," he promised. With the hand that was holding hers, he brought their hands up so he could kiss hers softly. "Are you gonna be okay?"

#ic #dewey #dewey3

[taffytm]

@deweydewdrop said: “I can’t wait to show you off”

“Ugh, same.” Tiffany felt freer than she’d been in a long time now that her love life—and therefore the rest of her life—had been overhauled. There were still parts that hurt, things about her relationship with Randy that she didn’t feel had gotten proper closure when they broke up and he moved out, but her feelings about him had been complicated even when they were still together; so now they were complicated but her daily life wasn’t a constant struggle and headache. It was still a total upgrade. She felt so emotionally secure with Dewey, and they’d been able to spend so much uninterrupted, guilt-free time together lately, it was a dream.

The only problem was that their newfound relationship was only semi-public. Their friends and families knew, but it was hush-hush on social media until a respectable amount of time passed since the news of her and Randy’s breakup. Tiff and Dewey could still go out together like they always had as friends, but nothing overtly coupley. For two people very used to putting themselves out there online, it was so hard to resist showing off how obsessed with each other they were. “Is it insane that I want everyone to be jealous of us?”

#ic #dewey #dewey4

[taffytm]

“Dewey,” Tiffany corrected, shooting Jackie a weird look, but not otherwise commenting on her misunderstanding of his name despite Tiff’s having just used it in her brief recounting of events. Jackie was being a supportive enough friend listening to her dating woes—she could be afforded a little grace for not paying full attention to the details…even if Candice had been more than attentive and easily followed every part of the story when she was told everything on the night of the Halloween ball. Maybe that was the issue: Jackie still didn’t understand the full context of everything that had happened, only the surface level explanation Tiff had provided. She hadn’t exactly wanted to get into all the gory details and have all that shit spread throughout the wider friend group, but maybe it wouldn’t hurt to answer her questions so Jackie at least knew the whole truth before trickling the most important information down.

“Honestly…thinking like that? That it would all be for nothing if we ever broke up…That just would just keep us in a bad relationship for the rest of our lives. Like, there has to be a point when you can’t just stay around for what used to be there.” It seemed so obvious in retrospect, but the truth was that this fallacy had kept Tiffany and Randy together for years despite all the reasons they should have called it quits sooner. The jealousy, arguments and pettiness—their emotional incompatibility stapled together with attraction, convenience, and a lifelong friendship that would be inevitably tainted when they broke up. “So, like, no. Dewey didn’t make me realize that it was wrong with Randy. He just made me realize that it was worth letting him go, because there’s better waiting for me.” She paused, feeling like she still wasn’t getting her meaning through entirely. “I mean, like, I would have just accepted the bare minimum from Randy because I love him—I loved him—but being around Dewey, he gives me so much more than that.” If she could have love and effort, the answer was obvious.

"They say that if it's right, you know." -Tiffany ( @taffytm )

As she refrained herself from rolling her eyes, there was instead, a small yet understanding like smile on her face. When both Tiffany and Candice had shot her a text earlier within their group chat of just them three about coming over to Candice’s place, Jackie had the suspicion on what the reason might be. Granted, she shouldn’t be making assumptions when the three of them had spend plenty of time together— exclusive girl time for that matter, however, it wasn’t lost among herself and the other racers of how there was a sudden shift among the group. Ergo, the lack of presences to be exact. And more importantly— the lack of a so-called-power couple’s presences together. But unlike the rest of the racers, she knew the exact reason of why was that. As the image of Randy’s bruised face flashed within her mind and his drunken confession of what Tiff had done, it had not be a shock nor a surprise to Jackie when her friend told her how she and Randy were broken up— “For good”. Oh, and to put that little cherry straight on the top, Tiff ended her explanation about how she met with some guy—Phooey or whatever—which then lead to the other girl in making such a statement. 

“Wow, so meeting this, um, Phooey? Guy, is all that it took for you to realize that what you had with Randy never felt right?” Jackie suddenly questioned, now with a curious look on her face. “So all these years of dating Randy was all for nothing then?" 

#ic #jackie #jackie1

[taffytm]

It had been a long night, from the events of the Halloween party to the debrief at her best friend’s house afterwards. Even after Candice eventually fell asleep, Tiffany couldn’t get any rest knowing that she was going to have to go home the next day and officially end her long-term relationship. Even knowing it was the right choice, it still hurt—like cutting off a poisoned limb. Knowing she probably looked like shit due to her night of crying and lack of beauty sleep, she was surprised to see how much worse Randy looked when she finally went home and saw him icing a bruised face.

“What the fuck, Randy,” she breathed, softening for the slightest moment. Despite her resolve to end things with him, she never wanted to see him actually hurt like this. But she couldn’t help imagining he brought it upon himself, instigating whatever altercation led him to look like this while he was angry last night. “Did you get into a bar fight or—?” From the look on his face, she could tell that wasn’t it, and her fingers itched for her car keys, to head right back out and find Dewey, who she was suddenly sure had been on the other side of the brawl. But she could meet him later, once she and Randy were finished. Her expression hardened. Whatever had happened to leave him in this state, it didn’t affect the choice Tiffany had already made during their own fight the previous night. They were breaking up, now; this development wasn’t going to make her lose her resolve. “We need to talk."

@taffytm

There was an eerie feeling as Randy got home before Tiffany, even if he had already expected her absence. He checked on Peanut, attempted to clean himself up (but was unable to wash away all of the aftermath of the fight, of course), and he thought about Halloween and what the hell had happened the previous night — now that he was sobered up, he was feeling like a dumbass. His anger had somewhat subsided, reality was beginning to settle in and .. well, he was more than feeling the consequences. Unsure of when Tiffany would be home, he sat in the kitchen and iced his face again in the meantime, dreading the conversation to come. He wasn’t sure how Tiffany was going to react to his bruises, or if she already knew to expect it (it wouldn’t surprise him if she was with Dewey right now, while he played the victim), but he wasn’t looking forward to the aftermath regardless… He had a feeling that just blaming the liquor and simply saying he wasn’t himself last night wouldn't make up for how he treated her, and the fight would likely only piss her off more. Unknowing that there was more than just liquor spiked in the punch, a magical interference that brought out the worst in him, Randy had nothing else he could point the blame to but himself. He likely looked like a dog with its tail tucked between his legs as Tiffany finally did get home, unable to even attempt to force a smile as she came into view in the kitchen. “Hey…”

#ic #randy #randy5

[taffytm]

The fact that Candice was wiping away her tears was further proof to Tiffany just how little Randy actually cared. Both Dewey and Candice were sympathetic, concerned with her feelings, wanting to stop her crying with the gentlest touches because they didn’t like to see her upset; meanwhile, Randy had accused her of faking and told her to stop causing a scene in public. From a romantic or platonic perspective, someone who genuinely loved her would treat her better than that. It only made another wave of tears roll down her cheeks, which Candice took care of before grabbing her hand to take her home. “Sorry for making you leave early,” she mumbled as they waited for a ride outside the hotel. This was a rare event to miss, Halloween only coming once a year, so it was further testament to how good a friend Candice was to leave with her without even a second of hesitation.

The car ride was quiet, Tiff resting her head on her best friend’s shoulder and slowly stemming the flow of tears, but once they were finally at Candice’s house, washed up from the ball and pajama'd with comfort snacks in hand, she was ready to start explaining herself. “Randy and I had a major fight. We’re gonna break up. Don’t tell anyone yet—we might need some time before everyone knows.” She took a deep breath, the first huge piece of news to unpack out in the open now, but there were still so many details left to share to paint the full picture, and she didn’t imagine it would get easier from there. “So, like, he was flirting with this random woman, and I confronted him, but he turned it around on me ‘cause I’ve been hanging out with Dewey, and he wouldn’t believe that I’m not cheating. When he was the one I just fucking caught flirting with a stranger? But then I…I did. I went and kissed Dewey.” Saying it aloud made her feel suddenly ten times lighter. It was strangely freeing to admit. “And I don’t care! I’m breaking up with him anyway! I’m so done with him. It feels so good to say that.”

While she was extremely confused by this entire situation and has no idea what was happening between two of her closes friends or what this current fight between them means, one thing Candice knew for sure was that Tiffany needed her right now. It didn’t matter if she had very little context of everything, all it took was for her to take one look at her best friends face and noticing how upset she was—to the point where mascara had been running down Tiff’s cheeks—for Candice to know that this was going to be a long night for them. One in which will be filled with a lot more tears, hopefully some explanations so she could comfort her bestie even better, at least two batches of cookies they’ll both no doubt will be baking, and the largest tub of strawberry ice cream they can find and stuff their faces with. Yeah, it was going to be a sleepover exclusively just for the two of them, and Tiff wouldn’t have to leave on the following day if she didn’t want to either.

“Life would be a lot less brighter if I didn’t have you around, I can tell you that.” Candice commented, rubbing her thumbs against her best friends cheeks so she could rub some of the mascara away. If it weren’t for how dramatic the moment currently was, she nearly would’ve laughed at how Tiffany looked, always looking a little wild whenever she had mascara running and yet still looking as gorgeous as she always does. “Let’s get out of here.” She added, whipping away a few extra tears before dropping one of her hands down and grasping onto Tiffiany’s. Was it a little sad that she was leaving the ball sooner than she wanted to? A little, yeah, but Candice would drop anything when it came to her best friend, including leaving a ball she had been enjoying with a guy whom she wanted to get to know even more. But her best friend always takes priority to her. Always. With that, the pair made their way out the ball, Candice calling texting for a Lift to pick them up with her free hand, and once one stopped in front of the hotel, she waited for her friend to get inside first before informing the driver where to go. And just like that, they were heading to Candice's home.

#ic #candice #she's def not done crying for the night lmao #she's on an emotional roller coaster #candice1

[taffytm]

She didn’t need long to think about it—the offer of a picnic on the beach was more enticing than any date they’d had in a long time. Always going to the same old places because they were tried and true favorites was fine, but it was kind of like…playing the same levels over and over again. Unlocking a new map was exciting. The beach had actually been somewhere she’d visited with Dewey lately, though never for a romantic picnic date. Why was she thinking of him right now? Randy was being sweet and even considerate of her streaming schedule; they were going to have a good time and she wasn’t going to think about anything or anyone else.

“I’m in.” She grinned. “Now let me get ready.” She gave him a quick kiss and rolled out of bed, heading towards the bathroom, but pausing again in the doorway. She wanted to ask him to start packing their picnic to save them time, but with him already taking the initiative himself today, Tiff doubted whether it would be necessary to tell him. If she nagged, it would ruin the whole mood they’d set so far. “Love you!” she said simply before turning back to start her morning routine.

Dewey grinned, genuinely wishing that they could be like this together as himself. It wasn't fair that Randy would end up with the glory at the end of the day, especially for right now. She genuinely thought this was her boyfriend being so cute and sweet, when in reality it was Dewey's charm, and genuine feelings toward her, that was making her smile this morning.

Even if she still had to stream later, that still gave them plenty of time together. Besides, he wasn't sure how long this would last, so he had to think quick on what they should do together. "How about .. picnic on the beach?" He suggested, quirking up an eyebrow. It was different, romantic, gave them some alone time.. he already knew Tiffany liked the beach from the times they'd walked it together playing Pokemon Go .. he felt pretty confident with the on-the-fly thinking, a confident smile present. "I won't keep you all day, I'll make sure we have time to stream later," he promised, with the assumption that this was only temporary and unsure for how long. "You in?"

#ic #dewey #dewey2

[taffytm]

“That’s—ooh!” Tiffany squeaked as Randy gave her a surprise ass-grab, flushing in embarrassment and hoping nobody’s eyes were drawn their way because of it. She loved attention, sure, but only the right kind. Halfheartedly slapping his chest in reprimand, because she wasn’t really mad but bad behavior had to be discouraged (dogs were so much easier to train than boyfriends), she leaned in even closer and spoke under her breath. “Let’s just leave after dinner; we have dessert at home.” Unless they were sitting with someone heinous, in which case there was an emergency and they had to leave immediately. That much went unspoken.

As Tiffany took another sip from his glass, Randy kept his eyes on Louie and Davis, as if he were trying to decipher what the hell these two could be talking about. Well, he knew damn well that the triplet had a long history of disliking the guy — did Doofus just never get the hint and continue to bother Louie, anyway? Most likely. If the couple were to actually intervene to rescue their friend, it would only result in them getting dragged into the drama along with him. It was better to avoid the Doofus danger zone. Nodding in agreement, he turned his attention back to his girlfriend and shot her a smile. “Depends how early we dip,” he teased with a chuckle. “We could game if we’re not too tired.” Though his arm was still comfortably around her waist, his hand did linger down for a split second to give her ass a playful squeeze. “Or Netflix and chill?”

#ic #randy #randy2

[taffytm]

Tiffany couldn’t bear to hear Dewey say that he destroyed everything he touched without proving him wrong, because he was touching her, and for at least a moment everything that made her feel unlovable disappeared and it was just them in the world and he needed to be kissed. For a few seconds, everything was perfect. Reality settled back in slowly as they pulled apart, the truth that Tiff was still in a relationship as of right now; even if she knew in her own heart that it was over, she had to make sure Randy knew it too before she continued moving forward with Dewey. Squeezing Dewey’s hand, she spoke softly but decisively, “I’m gonna break up with him.” He hadn’t asked her to, but she didn’t need him to. She didn’t need him to ask her out either—not yet. There was an unspoken understanding between them of what was happening here. They didn’t need to discuss it right now to know what the endgame of all this was going to be.

“I think I just need a night…I don’t even want to go home right now.” Tiff sighed, slowly detaching her hand from Dewey’s to press her fingers into her temples. The stress and crying was starting to get to her head. She offered a small, slightly strained smile and asked, “Can we talk in a couple days?”

Not only did Dewey feel bad for Tiffany, but he also felt angry toward Randy. Despite that now the triplet could finally get a chance with his crush, it didn't mean he was happy with how this was playing out. Randy had ruined Tiffany's night, her makeup ... and Dewey had contributed to that. This was only one of his many fuck ups recently, the list only growing longer and longer. He was angry at himself just as much as he was angry toward Randy.

A light chuckle escaped his lips, shaking his head. "Everything. Anything I touch lately, I destroy," he confessed. He was noticing the pattern more and more now. It was an apology that went far beyond this mess between Tiffany and Randy, but in this moment it was really just for her. He didn't regret his feelings for Tiffany of course, or that she finally had an out in her shitty relationship, but he did wish that she didn't have to hurt in the process. He'd already hurt his own brother, the rest of his family along with him, and now this? Despite his fault in all of this though, despite admitting that he ruined everything he touched recently, Tiffany leaned in and kissed him. The familiar touch of her lips against his caught him by surprise, only pausing for a moment before kissing her back. His hand didn't leave from hers, and as they kissed, it was truly the first moment since before the hotel bombing that Dewey felt that things might be okay.

#ic #dewey #dewey3

[taffytm]

Even on my good days, you’ve still gone to him. That was a punch in the fucking gut. She still didn’t know how Randy even knew about any of the times she’d hung out with Dewey, but one particular day came to mind: that morning Randy had woken up and showered her with affection despite having a hangover, taking her to the beach for a romantic picnic and making her believe things were looking up between them. She had gone out for frozen yogurt with Dewey later that day and told him how sweet and romantic her boyfriend was, and how well their relationship was doing. She had decided then that it was about time to be clear with the boundaries of their friendship, ensuring that they were strictly platonic, because she was so sure about Randy. It only took a few weeks after that random burst of honeymoon happiness for them to fall right back into old patterns. Randy’s drinking, Tiffany’s nagging, the minor annoyances always building into arguments instead of rolling off their shoulders, because they were both too stubborn to let anything go, and because at some point they had stopped being able to understand each other (if they ever had.)

It was a continuous cycle that she had never fully realized was such a problem until now. It wasn’t until trying to give up on those secret budding feelings she had felt growing for Dewey Duck over the past months they’d been spending time together, that she could see clearly…The old life she had once imagined lasting forever, her and Randy, wasn’t sustainable. It wasn’t fulfilling. And she didn’t want to give up on the person who was actually capable of consistently making her happy—not just trying once in a blue moon and then giving up and blaming her for his lack of desire to make a continuous effort. Was nothing he did enough to make her happy, or was he just tired of being forced to give as much as fifty-fifty in their relationship, and using that as an excuse so he didn’t have to bother anymore? So he could justify flirting with other women, as if his apparent failure to make her happy meant he had free reign to do whatever he wanted, especially things that would make her even unhappier. That was so vindictive, it took her breath away. If he was so convinced that he couldn’t make her happy that he would rather pursue other girls, why hadn’t they just broken up? If infidelity was all fair to him, why was he so mad about her and Dewey? (Whatever he thought was going on between them that he wouldn’t say here.) Tiffany was so tired of fighting this fight when it was obvious all paths were leading to the same destination. Did Randy see the map of where they were heading, too? Did he understand that there was only one ending to this story now? She was already grieving by the time he made the final blow.

Even on their worst days…This was their worst day. Of all their years together, this was it, and he wasn’t concerned with her feelings at all, only with throwing her words back in her face—because pointing out how bad it looked for him to flirt with others in public meant the only thing she cared about was how people perceived her. Right now, all she wished was that her boyfriend perceived her accurately. How could she communicate with someone so determined to misunderstand her? Above anyone else, he was supposed to be the one who saw her at her most vulnerable and recognized what motivated her, what inspired her, what made her happy or not, what she was afraid to lose. Yes, she cared about her reputation, because her reputation was her career. She cared about her career, because it was her passion. She cared about him, but he refused to see that. Her concern for his drinking habit was taken as her being controlling, her desire for him to spend more time at home with her than out partying taken as overbearing. If she pushed out of a desire to see him grow and thrive and be more than unmotivated in life, she reminded him of his parents. It was like Randy had made up this idea of her in his mind a long time ago and twisted anything she said or did to fit the narrative. He couldn’t even see her for who she was, he was so busy convincing himself that he already knew, and that everything she did was for some selfish goal or the facade of perfection rather than out of love.

Even as she stood here crying and practically begging him to see her, to meet her in the middle, he dismissed her feelings as an act and insisted she stop making a scene. Funnily enough, being told to stop crying only made the problem worse. Tiffany blinked at the ceiling, but it was too late to stop the flow of tears. “Believe me, I would if I could,” she replied, a sarcastic smile gracing her lips for a second. She was so angry, so disappointed, and so, so tired of this. “You know what, Randy? You’re right. You’re not perfect, and you’re not trying to hide it. And you’re not trying to change it, either. Don’t say nothing you do will make me happy when you mean you just don’t want to do any of the things that would. You know what would make me happy? Try.” She took in a shaking breath, still trying to get her physical reaction to her emotional state under control, but it was impossible with the weight of what was happening on her chest. This was no longer a fight to be won, so she had to stop fighting it. Waving him off with one hand while the other wiped her cheeks, Tiff began backing away. “Never mind. We’re not doing this right now.” She turned on her heel, hoping he knew better than to follow her.

"What? Like you don't know?" Randy was ready to expose everything he knew right there — the bracelet she left at Dewey's, the obvious flirting between them, the way he experienced the norm between them firsthand when Dewey switched bodies with him, from their fro-yo date to even the flirty emojis next to her name in his phone — but he stopped himself. They were still in public, even if Tiff had dragged him away, and she had no idea about the magical interference that helped Randy realize what she'd been hiding. And if she were really mad about that, she could thank Dewey the next time she saw him.

"While I'd love to unpack all the bullshit you've been pulling behind my back right now, we should wait until we're alone," he finally answered, frustrated that he even had to lay out the obvious to her. She was clearly avoiding showing any guilt, despite what he already knew. He almost hoped they'd leave it there for now — wait until they got home to continue this fight and unpack everything — but Tiffany wasn't ready to back down.

As she began to point out what Randy had said about her in the past — her controlling attitude, her clinginess, the way he felt suffocated by her — he couldn't understand how she was missing the obvious. If Randy had really been so sick of Tiffany, he would've broken up with her (and not come back) years ago, and the same could be said for her. Even if he complained about her and they fought, the distance and the fights always reminded him why he loved her and to not give up on each other. However, things changed. Now that her attention had been taken by Dewey and her feelings were so obviously shifting, exactly what Randy had been afraid of was happening. The spark between them was long gone, and he was part of the problem. By giving them space and escaping in an attempt to not drive each other insane, he pushed her too far away. Were either of them willing or able to pull the other back in and not lose what little love was left? Even with that thought in the back of his mind, that he could very well lose Tiffany from this, his frustration and intoxication overpowered the logic. Instead, he kept digging deeper.

"Nothing I do is enough for you, you know that? I escape from you and flirt with other girls because it's so obvious that nothing I do will make you happy." Their relationship may as well have been a game, both of them fighting to keep each other interested but both were losing; the hot and cold game was fun at first, but it got old. Maybe it was a sign that they were growing up, growing out of each other in the process. "You can blame it on all the shitty things I've done, but I know that even on my good days, you've still gone to him." It wasn't exactly fair when Randy wasn't the one who'd given her the good day he was specifically referring to, where Dewey gave Tiffany a romantic date in his body, but he was sure it applied to other instances; they had good times together too, like Sharpay's party. Were Tiffany and Dewey talking back then, too? Did she still think of him when they were supposedly happy and having a good night together? "Even on our worst days, it's always been you Tiff. I know I'm not perfect, but I'm not fucking hiding it. You still keep pretending, and for what? Who the fuck are you fooling?"

The punch and the anger were mixing within him and making Randy feel warm, noticing now that Tiffany's eyes were starting to well with tears. He didn't think it was worse. Wasn't romantic feelings more of a heavy blow than a few flirty exchanges? Where was the loyalty? "No, not when it's all an act. The only thing you care about is how your fans perceive you, and it is bullshit!" He'd never been this harsh with Tiffany before, but he was still aware of their surroundings. "Do you really care so much about what everyone's gonna think? Then stop crying in public and causing a scene."

#ic #randy #randy4

[taffytm]

The way Dewey was staring at her so intensely and obviously scrutinizing her made Tiffany want to put on her sunglasses. She was already feeling weird enough with the turn her thoughts had taken since she was reminded of Randy, and it was off-putting to feel like Dewey was actively trying to read her mind. It definitely didn’t help when he asked about her boyfriend, and his emphasis on “he” was certainly a choice that did not go unnoticed. Tiff raised her brows at him, but didn’t comment on his obviousness.

“He’s…” She started, but paused to consider what she actually wanted to tell him. There should be no reason she shouldn’t be honest about her relationship with someone who was just a friend, but some part of her still hesitated to shut Dewey down completely when she could tell he was always waiting for a chance to take his shot. Thinking back on the morning she’d had with her boyfriend, though, Tiff couldn’t help but smile; he deserved for her to hype him up, just like Dewey deserved not to be led on by her general lack of excitement towards her relationship, which she knew was probably the main thing continuing to give him hope. The way things were looking up that day really might spell out a game changer for her and Randy, the spark revived between them, so she needed to stop keeping her options with another man so…open. “He took me to the beach for a picnic earlier,” she admitted. “He was, like, super sweet and romantic this morning, too? I don’t know. It was just really nice. So, yeah, he’s good, we’re doing good.”

At least Randy knew she hadn't completely forgotten about him, watching her expression as he mentioned his favorite flavor combo. He was probably watching Tiffany more closely than ever before, listening to even the slight shift in her voice as she responded. It almost surprised him to hear his name get brought up, a relief but also strange. She clearly didn't have a problem talking about her boyfriend with Dewey, so what was up? He just didn't care that she was taken?

"Oh, yeah?" He tried not to sound too interested, stuffing his hands in his pockets as they continued toward the fro-yo shop. Randy seized the opportunity to get his girlfriend to talk about him more; he couldn't help but be curious about what his body had been up to all day, and what Tiffany might have to say. What was she comfortable with telling Dewey, exactly? Randy cleared his throat awkwardly, "So, uh .. What's he been up to?"

#ic #randy #randy3

[taffytm]

Though they both sympathized with whatever the fuck Louie was being put through tonight, their empathy obviously didn’t extend far enough to them actually rescuing him from his social situation. Tiffany simply shrugged it off, turning back to Randy as he offered her another sip of his wine, which she accepted happily. “Well, this party is a drag, so at least he’ll have something interesting to say about it tomorrow.” She was already thinking ahead to when they could acceptably leave. "What do you wanna do when we get out of here?"

This time Randy didn’t hold back his chuckle, considering she was absolutely right. They were quickly distracted from shit talking the party though as they turned their focus to where Davis was. Eyebrows narrowing, Randy sipped from his drink again. “Who knows, the dude’s completely unhinged—” he answered, stopping as Tiff pointed out who the poor sucker was talking to Davis. “What the fuck?” First he’d seen Louie and Sharpay together, and now Doofus? Meeting her gaze, he shrugged in confusion. “No idea what that’s about.” If Randy were brave enough, he’d go try to save his friend, but he was probably better off staying by Tiffany instead. He tilted his glass in her direction to offer her another drink. “Louie must be having a wild night.”

#ic #randy #randy2

[taffytm]

Chocolate and peanut butter wasn’t an unusual combination in any way, but it was such a Randy staple that Tiffany’s nose automatically scrunched in response to Dewey providing it as his flavor of the day. Maybe those two were such opposites that it just seemed weird they would even like the same thing…Then again, they both liked her, didn’t they? Maybe their tastes were similar after all. Tiffany felt immediately guilty thinking that. She had been having a great morning with her boyfriend earlier, but now here she was with Dewey, and…What did it mean that she kept comparing both of them? She loved Randy, but whenever he frustrated her, her mind swayed toward Dewey. Sometimes she could almost forget about her boyfriend entirely when with Dewey, but then something would remind her of him and she would get antsy.

“Yeah,” she said, hoping to sound normal when she answered. Dewey probably didn’t know how conflicted their friendship made her over something as simple as fro-yo. “Peanut butter cups, too. Those are Randy’s favorites,” she added. Tiff didn’t know why she had to bring him up, besides to remind both of them that he existed, that their relationship status meant he was always here, between them, even when he wasn’t.

Playing the part of someone else wasn’t that easy, especially when he hardly knew the person. Randy wasn’t an actor, but Tiffany didn’t seem like she was suspicious of him acting strange, so maybe he was doing alright so far. Normally, Randy wouldn’t even have to ask what Tiff was getting — she was typically pretty consistent with her favorite flavors. However, this weird situation he was stuck in had him wanting to question everything. If Tiffany was spending all this time with Louie’s brother without Randy knowing, what else didn’t he know? He wondered if half the things he knew about her were even true anymore, if she had changed right before his eyes and he’d been too distracted to realize.

His eyebrow quirked up. Peppermint? That wasn’t too out of character for her but still surprised him. Hearing her ask sweet or sour to him was strange for a moment, thinking how that was never Randy’s go-to, but he kept having to remind himself that this wasn’t him. Well, if she was going to catch him by surprise, he supposed that Dewey could too. As she bumped his arm with her shoulder, he forced a smile, trying so hard to stay in the moment. “Mm… Neither, actually. I think today’s a …. Chocolate peanut butter combo day. They had Reese’s Pieces there to sprinkle on top, right?”

#ic #randy #randy3

[taffytm]

She could have asked what had gotten into Randy this morning to make him so snuggly and sweet (it was seriously almost gross how tender he was being) but Tiffany was too weak to resist the romantic moment, as rare as it was. “Stop being so cute,” she said, pushing his shoulder, but the smile returned to her face and stayed this time. His suggestion to skip streaming and do something fun together instead was compelling; she was tempted to ask if he was just trying to get out of working, but he’d typically just do that on his own without dragging her away from work, too, if his goal was just to be lazy. It seemed like he actually wanted to spend time with her today, just the two of them.

“Mm, I can post and tell my sweethearts that I’ll start streaming late today…What do you have in mind?” This was a fun side to see of him, and Tiff found herself eager to see just what he would come up with. Their choice destinations and activities were usually much the same as they had ever been—arcade, candy store, driving around, a party here, club there, back around to the old haunts. With this unexpected change in attitude, though, she couldn’t help thinking he might have a new idea or two up his sleeve.

Now that Dewey understood what was happening here, or at least somewhat, he could connect some of the dots on his own. The hangover made a lot more sense now; Tiffany had complained about Randy's drinking and partying plenty of times before. He wondered what it was that her boyfriend even gained out of it, and if it was even worth losing someone like Tiffany over. Not that he knew that they weren't going to last — but even someone without detective experience could piece the clues together.

Smiling as she laid beside him, he didn't further any advances or make a move. No, he was perfectly content just enjoying the peace with her, giving her a nice start to her day compared to what she was likely used to. He shrugged his shoulders. "Nothing, I just wanna appreciate this moment with you." And he meant that, even if that wasn't very Randy of him to say. He didn't care about Randy at this point; none of this was about him at the end of the day. All he was to Dewey was an obstacle that he needed to hurdle him and Tiffany around. At the question of his streaming, Dewey suddenly realized that Randy was probably expected to be working today (did Randy really even work though?). A sigh escaped his lips before a sudden idea popped into his mind. "I don't know .. Do you have plans today?" He asked, meeting her gaze. "What if we went and did something fun for the day, just you and me?"

#ic #dewey #dewey2

[taffytm]

"Guilty of what?" Tiffany didn’t know exactly what would happen if she admitted that she was guilty, but she certainly wasn't going to accept blame without any solid accusations. Yes, she’d kept Dewey a secret, but that didn’t mean she had treated him any differently than her other friends. Her reasons for keeping him to herself were all internal; she wasn’t running around flirting with Dewey or doing anything else like Randy seemed to imply. She resented the fact that he was even putting her on trial like this when he was the one literally being caught in the act—and while she couldn't predict the outcome of this fight, she was more than sure that she couldn't expect him to just forgive and forget any transgressions if she pleaded guilty. The more he tried to turn this on her, to excuse his own behavior like it was just fine as long as he admitted to it, the angrier she got. She'd dug her heels in too far to turn around now.

“Surprised I noticed?” she repeated in disbelief. “What, like you haven’t thought I was a control freak and micro-manager our whole relationship? Who you apparently need to escape from? You think I haven’t noticed every time you’ve flirted with someone else?” This wasn’t new, and it wasn’t a response to her spending more time with Dewey lately (however Randy even knew about that.) It was a pattern that existed well before she started hanging out with Dewey, part of what had pushed her to accept validation outside of her own boyfriend in the first place.

Tiffany couldn’t even string together a logical argument after that one—where she should have emphasized that, yeah, it was textbook sneaking because he lied about it, she was still caught on Randy saying he had to have a life outside of her, an escape from this bullshit. It was hard to mount a strong defense when her hands shook and her eyes filled with tears. Humiliating as always that she was driven to crying so easily, her body’s first response to any strong stressor. Which part was he calling bullshit—their whole relationship, or just her having a man in her life who actually treated her decently? She suddenly didn’t want to downplay it anymore, refusing to treat her own feelings as trivial. That was what it came down to: whether it was romantic or not, Dewey made her feel valued and that wasn’t meaningless. But the fact that Randy wanted to mess around and do stupid, meaningless shit—

“That’s even worse!” Could he really not see that? She felt like she was taking crazy pills here. If he fell in love with someone else, it would hurt like a bitch, but at least there would be some level of helplessness there. The heart wants what it wants, and all that. Randy flirting with other women with no meaning behind it practically meant that he just wanted to hurt her, with nothing else in it for him. If he was willing to disrespect her and their relationship for no reason, that just showed how little he truly cared. “Does anything you do mean anything? Do my feelings mean anything to you, or is that all just stupid bullshit too?”

Randy could tell instantly that Tiffany hadn't seen that coming. There was a moment pause, as if she needed to mentally calculate how Randy would even know anything about Dewey, but unsurprisingly she didn't let that distract her from being angry at Randy still. That didn't scare him or make him feel guilty — it was obvious that this had been building up for awhile from both sides. It was likely going to get ugly before either of them backed down.

"Friends?" He scoffed. "I know your friends, Tiff. We've had the same friends since we were kids. What, all of a sudden you become best friends with Louie's brother and hide it? Just admit that you're guilty." For once, Randy actually wasn't trying to get out his blame in all of this; the more honest he was, the better he came out of it. "Hey, I have nothing to hide. I admit it — I was flirting with her. I'm surprised you even fucking noticed." Now, Tiffany had a sudden interest in what Randy did, as if that was more important than the Dewey situation. He shook his head in disbelief. "Seriously? That's your argument? That isn't me sneaking around — that's me having a life outside of you. An escape from this bullshit." He didn't have a filter to hold him back, his words harsh. He had to get it all out there before Tiffany could completely paint him the bad guy. "I should've known you'd find your own escape too, but him?" He asked, still trying to understand the whole thing. "You know, you can point the finger at me all you want, but everything I've done? It's stupid, meaningless shit. Can you say the same about Dewey?"

#ic #randy #randy4

[taffytm]

#insp

[taffytm]

#image #dewey

[taffytm]

Aside from the arcade, the candy shop was the one place that could be counted on for a run-in with Veronica von Schweetz. It was a little annoying that they couldn’t seem to completely avoid each other, but most times they crossed paths Tiffany could escape having to engage in conversation with her with a well-timed scoff or eye-roll. Today was different, the woman actually approaching her with a smile and making small talk, as if they were on that level. Tiff gave her a blank look, almost hitting her with a sarcastic rhetorical, When did we become friends? But something held her back this time. Maybe she had bigger problems to deal with right now than to waste mental energy on being mean to Ronnie. Who was she even trying to impress with that shtick anyway?

Tiffany grabbed a package of candy canes, not thanking Ronnie for the advice, but not saying anything nasty either. “I don’t know? My friend’s family is throwing one, so I’m gonna go to theirs. The masquerade was kinda cool, though. I guess.” Honestly, the party itself hadn’t made much of an impression on Tiff compared to all the drama that the night brought on, but sue her—she wasn’t practiced at making small talk with Veronica, and there was nothing else she could say without going into a trauma dump. She still didn’t even know what possessed Ronnie to speak to her, but she continued holiday candy shopping with the girl at her side as if this was in any way normal.

who: @taffytm where: king candy's

There were few times when she ever thought it was a good idea to start a conversation with Tiffany. Firstly because she was bitch and secondly because they had nothing worth discussing. Today was different. When she saw her looking at a bag of candy canes she couldn't help but feel a tug at her heart to say something. It had been accidentally revealed to her that Randy was flirting with another girl and even if she wasn't a good person no one deserved to be cheated on. Still, Ronnie couldn't come out and ask about it. Instead, she would need to try to come into it subtly which could go south knowing their history. "They always sell out the closer it gets to Christmas so if you like them it's smart to get them early," she said coming up beside her nemesis with the offering of a smile. "Think Lottie will throw a bangin' Christmas party too? You were at the masquerade, right?"

#ic #veronica