"I'm simply not staying here, no way." Vallerie presents her acceptance letter to her older cousins, Valentin and Yves. 

She huffs as if showing the acceptance letter alone would make her two older cousins agree easily.

"The state Academy here in Pampeka city is just as prestigious as St.Lyashko. Why on earth would you ever move out of the Demunde state lines?" Valentin starts, trying to find a reason why his beloved cousin would even ask to move away just for school. 

She has her reasons, but out of pride, she excuses it to attend one of the country's best academies.

"St. Lyashko has one thing that all the other academies don't offer. A Cupid's Club." The determination in her eyes is evident; she wants to go there at all costs. 

"Vallerie, darling. This again?" Yves finally speaks up. 

"I'm serious! I want to be a cupid!" 

"You know you can't—" 

"But I can!" She argues. 

"If you really want to be a cupid, why does it have to be in St.Lyashko? That's a whole state away, who knows what could happen to you as soon as you leave Demunde!" 

"There are cupid academies here in Pampeka, heck, the state academy has a decent Cupid course you can attend instead of going to Bleufuad entirely." Valentin counters, Vallerie growing restless at their reasons why she should just stay in the Demunde state lines. 

"You two don't get it. It has to be Lyashko, everyone in our family attended St.Lyashko, why can't I?" She marches up to a photo from one of the left side shelves in Yves' study to show them as graduates in said academy. 

"That's different—" 

"To hell! You two even went in the same club, and flourished." She sets the photo down, "You two wouldn't have made it either. Come on, you know what they're like." She almost sounds begging, her pride slowly faltering the more she felt like losing.

"You didn't go to Lyashko because it was better; you went there because they gave you a chance. I want that chance too!" 

Vallerie had a point. The Calibration trials they had for up and coming cupids were close to brutal. The two men considered their past experiences now that Vallerie was in their exact same shoes.

"But that doesn't change who you are, Vallerie. You can't be a cupid." Yves solemnly argues. 

"I will, please, just... let me attend St. Lyashko." Her acceptance letter was laid out for both men to see. An outstanding vouch of character from the Demunde Duchess herself. 

She grits her teeth, her pride taking a hit again. She so desperately wanted to hide the true reason she wanted to run away, but with how the argument was going... she'll never get out of here.

"...I'm not staying here, not after Truus..."

...

"I'm going, I've already made up my mind." She relents, the crack in her voice after being reminded why she felt like a stranger in her own hometown.

....

"Alright, you can go." Valentin nods. 

"Valentin!" Yves still wants to argue. 

"Enough, Yves. Vallerie is dead set; give her a chance. Bleufuad isn't a bad city either; it's near the ocean, and the people are decent enough." The older man reasons. 

"Go pack up, Val. Force Herve to help you pack." Valentin nods, "WHAT?!" The voice of a male pre-pubescent teen could be heard complaining, his voice already by the door, as if he was listening in on the conversation.

"I'm actually going to Bleufuad? No taking it back! That's a promise." 

"Yes, Vallerie. You are going." 

"Oh my god... " A smile creeps up to her lips, "I'm going to Bleufuad!" She jumps up and down, her further arguments dying in her throat as soon as she is allowed.

Vallerie cheers as she exits the study, the two men continue to fight, but Vallerie couldn't care less. 

"Come on, help me pick my outfits." Vallerie drags the youngest cousin to help her. "This is so unfair." 

Her room was already half packed as if she knew she would eventually get her way. Herve grumbling to himself in the corner as he packed her plush toys with surprising ease. 

"I'm gonna miss you, Herve." Vallerie smothers her younger cousin, "Aagghh, get off! I'm just happy you're finally moving out." 

"Awee, aren't I your favorite cousin? What about all those egg tarts I always make for you?" 

"...well... okay fine... maybe I will miss you. But I won't miss this!" He holds up a plush toy, "Or your makeup, or your stupid outfits, or... the movies that we watched... or the video games we play...." 

....

"Why does it have to be St. Lyashko Val?" 

"I have plans in Lyashko that can never be achieved anywhere else." 

"Can we still play online at least? Tino is too old to know what half the controls are and Yves is too busy. You were the only one who had ever made time with me, even if you're so frilly and girly and red." Herve admits. 

"Call me often, dork." 

"Yeah, yeah, whatever."

They continue to pack, making good progress on what was left. Vallerie looks around her room. She's completely uprooting her life in a city she grew up in, in a home she spent most of her life just to be in Bleufuad, just to be in St.Lyashko. 

"Hey, is this photo supposed to be... torn up?" Herve holds up a photo. 

"Huh, what pho– oh nononnonono, oh my god..." Vallerie shakes off the silverfish. "Oh no...." 

"What was it a photo of?" 

...

"Me, Truus, and her ex... before she..." Vallerie stops. 

"She made her choice; it was never me." Her voice carried to Herve, but she was more focused on the photo; it was only her left in the photo after the silverfish ate through the rest. All she could do was tighten her grip on it. She wanted to scream, but settled for this instead. 

"You'll be better than them, Val!" Herve encourages, "We can take our own pictures, I'll laminate it so that no silverfish will ever eat through it. Wait, don't move, I'll get the camera." 

Vallerie laughs at her younger cousin's antics to make her feel better. She turns back to the photo. What was the point in keeping it when it was just her without the people she used to love?

But this was still the photo she had with her friend, the smile on her face proved there was once a time Vallerie was still loved.

Not anymore.

She digs her foot on the pedal of the trash can to throw it away. She stares at the trash, then at the picture again. 

....

"When will I ever see myself be this happy again?" She bitterly laughs. 

She steps off the trashcan, instead she walks over to a stepping stool and picks a book from the highest shelf. Slipping it between the pages to be forgotten instead of being destroyed. 

At least there would be proof of better times.