I thought you were mine.. [Closed for Dakota]

Heartbroken was an understatement. No, Torrentstorm was in pure agony, all over. But the root of his aches were in his chest, constantly sending waves of pain throughout his entire body. Crushed flowers sat underneath his paws; crushed flowers for Hailsong. He had planned on giving them to her, but then he saw her with...with him. Starclan, he didn't even know his name, yet he hated him with a burning passion.

The silver tabby flinched as a fire burned in his chest, a never ending fire that started the moment Hailsong's tender eyes had landed on him. For the first time he felt incomplete. He felt as if he were missing something...missing his other half. When he laid eyes on her soft, calico fur and warm green eyes, he knew she was causing his inexplicable feelings. He knew she had become the center of his hurricane of emotions.

And he let the hurricane consume him. He was too..too helpless to do anything else.

Doing that turned out to be the worst mistake of his life. He could've sworn she had returned the feelings, so he let himself fall. He was so sure of himself and..Torrentstorm blinked, feeling moist tears trickle down his cheeks. Starclan, was he crying? Another sob wracked his body, confirming his suspicions. He unsheathed his claws and dug them into the ground as he lowered his head, sorrow washing over him like a flooded river.

His legs buckled and he collapsed, curling up tightly as more anguish flooded from his heart, the pain lapping at his body like a persistent flame. Torrentstorm shut his eyes tightly and tried to will it away; the pain, the flames, the feelings...but it only fanned the fire. It was like trying to blow out a fire but not realizing that you're only fueling it; unintentionally making the flames stronger and causing more destruction. Hailsong had started this fire and refused to end it. She led him on and fueled the flames.

Now he was going to burn.

OOC: What's funny and kinda cool is that I also rp Hailsong's future mate, Blizzardpaw/shell. XD I had forgotten :D

IC: Orchidpool watched day after day as her crush had bonded with her older sister, an odd emotion swirling in her poor, innocent heart. She often tried to avoid confrentations with Torrentstorm. She really didn't want to witness him and Hailsong conversing like...like a couple. The young she-cat was nevertheless happy for her sister...and Torrentstorm...if they were a couple. Orchid always wanted a mate, someone to have a family with. Her life-long dream was to have a beautiful family. Only that thought kept her spirits up.

Currently, Orchidpool found herself staring with wide eyes at the sobbing Torrentstorm. She could see, out of the corners of her pretty eyes, Hailsong happily chatting away with another tom. He seemed like the quiet-type. Maybe her sister was after those types of guys. The warrior carefully began to step up to the distressed tom. She felt like bolting away but this was her only chance to make herself known to her crush. He probably didn't know she existed, let alone Hailsong's younger sister. Before she even knew it, the she-cat had placed a paw gently on Torrentstorm's lower back as her way to comfort him. Her motherly instincts had kicked in once the moment she saw tears in his eyes. Oh Starclan, tears in those beautiful eyes made her want to cry. He didn't deserve this sadness, this rejection. "There, there. What's wrong? Why are you crying?" she asked in her soft, melodic voice. Her blue-green eyes held tender love in them. The warrior had to pretend she didn't know what was going on. She didn't want to seem weird to him.

Torrentstorm flinched at the voice, thinking that for a split second, it was Hailsong. No, he wasn't ready to face her yet. Not in this state of vulnerability. His head shot up and he whipped around, teeth bared as he hissed at...oh. No, no it wasn't her. The cat looked, sounded, and even smelled like her, but he knew it wasn't her. Perhaps they were siblings of some sort? Hailsong had told him when they first met, she did have plenty of siblings. The distraught tom relaxed and allowed himself to be comforted, sniffing as he pulled himself together to speak.

"I'm fine," He calmly lied, though his instincts begged him not to. It disgusted him, really, how easily he told himself that it would work out in the end. He'd only hurt himself more by convincing himself that he was being irrational. Of course, Hailsong loved him. She just wasn't ready to admit it, right? Torrentstorm shuddered and forced himself to sit up, staring down at his paws with a miserable look on his face. 

What if she had loved him? What if he had done something wrong and therefore, had lost her affection to some other tom? On the verge of breaking again, he buried his face into the other cat's fur, sobs escaping from within his bruised and battered chest. "Why doesn't she love me?!" Torrentstorm yowled at no one in particular as he cried into Orchidpool's once dry pelt, his emotions overcoming any stable part of him. The fire was slowly consuming him, bit by bit, until there would be nothing but ash; the leftovers of a once happy heart.

Orchidpool jumped at his outburst but held him tighter. "W-Who doesn't l-love you hun?" she asked with a slightly shaky voice. She knew exactly who but she had to continue her "clueless" act. The she-cat felt her heart crumble at the broken state Torrentstorm was in. He was a mess and she had to do something to help him. What could she do?

The warrior noticed the crushed flowers under Torrentstorm. 'For Hailsong...' she concluded silently. The pretty she-cat began to rub soothing circles with her paw on his back. She wanted to talk to a slightly calmer Torrentstorm.

Torrentstorm choked as he tried to speak, his own sadness causing his entire form to tremble. He pulled away and shook his head, turning away from the stranger. Breathing heavily, he once again tried to regain his composure. "First, you cry over a stupid she-cat. Then, you take it all out on an innocent cat!" His feelings for Hailsong were slowly tearing him apart, and would probably tear this cat apart too, since they seemed to care so much about him. Now that he was in a better state of mind, the cat's appearance came together; this cat was indeed Hailsong's sister, Orchidpool. He had seen her around but never bothered trying to interact with her.

He hesitated, debating whether or not he should tell her. He didn't want to distress her, number one, and he didn't want to turn her against her own kin. The gray tabby shook his head again and stared down at his paws once more. He noticed the now crushed flowers and rage began to seep into him. Torrentstorm narrowed his eyes as he unsheathed his claws and swatted it away, only to be overcome by grief again. He sniffled and turned away from the sight, murmuring things under his breath to keep himself stable.

"No one..no one doesn't love me. I told you, I'm fine," The lie slipped off his tongue as easily as honey, and he forced himself to smile to go with it. Though, his eyes betrayed it all. They betrayed the hurt, the anger, the sadness, all of it. Every single emotion swirling in his wide, tear-filled eyes.

OOC: I'm very sorry to have kept you waiting! College was keeping me from going on WCC!

IC: The quiet warrior stood up and positioned herself to where she was directly facing the tom and lied down. She placed a delicate paw on his and gave him a supportive smile. "Torrentstorm, listen to me. Please don't hide anything. It'll only make things worse in your heart. Tell me. I won't judge. I just want you to let everything out. It's a big step to recovery." Orchidpool mewed calmly and gently. She offered him a sweet smile as if trying to get him to open up and let his feelings and troubles loose. The she-cat was determined to help this poor tom. He deserved so much better!

Torrentstorm opened his mouth, but decided against it once more. He couldn't do that to Orchidpool or Hailsong, tear their bond apart with his nonsense. Wouldn't they be better off if he didn't say anything? The silver tabby huffed and curled up into a tiny ball, refusing to look at the she-cat. He couldn't do this to them, he just couldn't. He loved the dilute calico with all his heart and couldn't find it within himself to ruin their relationship. He would never forgive someone that did so to him and Tawnyfang. His sister was precious to him, and breaking apart because they loved the same cat; Starclan, if it ever came down to that, he would gladly give up the love of his life for her. She deserved all the happiness in the world. Wouldn't the deputy's daughters feel the exact same way?

"I...I can't. I just can't. I'll be fine. I'll be okay," Lying seemed to be the only way out of it. If he convinced himself that he could handle the hurt, maybe he actually would.

OOC: I didn't know you posted! :0 Please forgive my late post!

IC: Orchidpool got up and sat down in front of him once more. It was time to reveal that she really knew. Her trying to coax it out of him wasn't going to work at all. Well, here went nothing, "Torrentstorm...is this about Hailsong? I've noticed the way you look at her. Do you love her?" The timid cat's voice was steady despite the shattering pain in her heart. She loved her sister but felt that nobody would actually love her back. Orchidpool had come to accept that but that didn't remove her longing for Torrentstorm to notice that she truly loved him. To put it simply, Orchid was slightly jealous at how good life seemed to be for Hailsong. "It's okay. Maybe Hailsong needs to open her eyes and notice something precious that's right under her nose. And don't worry, I still love my sister. She just needs to think before she acts. I also want you to know that if you need anyone to talk to, i'm ready to listen." the she-cat gave him a gentle smile after finishing her small rant. She wanted to help the poor tom. Her heart was screaming at her to tell him what she really felt but she pushed those feelings back by telling herself that she will when Torrentstorm was feeling better and his mind was a bit clearer.

ooc; that's ok!! :)


"Do you love her?"

Torrentstorm flinched at the words, his breathing deep and heavy. More tears slipped down his striped cheeks as the pain in his heart increased. Yes, yes, he did love her. He loved her and she'd never love him back, no matter how hard he cried, and prayed that she'd someday feel the same. He was beginning to hyperventilate from the overload of stress, sobs wracking his frame as stood up and tried to scramble away. It wasn't fair, it wasn't fair. He had poured his entire heart out and yet she turned a blind eye, for him. Going off the way each other spoke to each other, and the way she had looked at him; a fire of love blazing in her beautiful eyes...Was it all a lie? Had she been duping him the entire time? Had he been a play thing, only temporary until the true love of her life was ready to settle down? The distraught tom tripped over his own paws and collapsed in the dirt, curling up into a tight ball and not moving for a long time. He simply laid there, shaking and sniffling, a complete mess of himself. Breaking down in front of Orchidpool made it even worse. Closing his eyes and blocking out all sounds, Torrentstorm remained there, barely moving until he was calmed down enough. His heart, once thumping faster than a moving monster, had slowed down to the point he could hear is own thoughts again. Slowly, he pulled himself off the ground, ears pinned down against his head as he forced himself to process what had just been said.

"It's ok. Maybe Hailsong needs to open her eyes and notice something precious right under her nose."

Perhaps...perhaps Orchidpool was right. Hesitantly, he nodded his head, a weird noise leaving his maw. It sounded like a laugh, but a sigh at the same time. That didn't matter though. Hesitantly, the silver tabby stumbled towards the fellow Riverclan warrior. Once he reached her, he wasted no time in burying his face in her shoulder, fresh tears already streaking down his cheeks. "I..I thought...I thought sh-she loved me, you know? Th-The way she looked at me..d-does she look at all the toms like that? D-Does she?!" His voice cracked and he sniffled, nuzzling deeper into her fur. There was something about her that was oddly comforting; it soothed his shattering heart and reassured him that everything would be alright. Maybe she was right; Hailsong had missed her chance with him. Not like she would notice anyway. She was too busy swooning over someone else. There was no point in dwelling on it anymore. She had made her choice, and now it was time to make his. Would he stay miserable over a she-cat he could never have, or get over it and hopefully find someone else? 

Sighing, he looked up at the gray she-cat with wide, tear-filled green eyes, "I'm sorry you had to find me like this, but I'm glad you did. You've helped me see the light. You're..You're sadly right," He went back to resting his head on her shoulder, looking out into the distance, "She's already made her choice. She doesn't love me. And as much as it might hurt I...I have to move on." Torrentstorm closed his eyes and nuzzled into her neck, steadily getting better thanks to her involvement.