𝐈𝐓'𝐒 𝐍𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑 𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐑...

TWITTER

vienna prescott
@viennaprescott

accountability is necessary, but so is empathy!!
you can call someone out without turning their
pain into entertainment

5:36 pm • october 8, 2019 • twitter for iphone
62,627 retweets 280,719 likes

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user1 | @user1
did vienna just defend zayn publicly
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user2 | @user2
yup... oh how the tables have turned

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user3 | @user3
but when someone keeps doing the same thing over and over... at what point is compassion just enabling?

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user4 | @user4
funny how the first tweet vienna makes after coming back from her hiatus is defending zayn
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user5 | @user5
lol i'm deadddd 😭 she did all of that silence just for it to go to waste

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user6 | @user6
everyone forgetting that vienna's been through it too!! maybe she's just tired of watching it happen to anyone

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user7 | @user7
some of you are real loud for people who haven't healed from anything. viennas tweet is actually mature and you can tell she's been healing

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user8 | @user8
bella and laura are such bad friends for letting vienna tweet this
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user9 | @user9
you sound dumb af 💀 so what the tweet was about zayn? if anything it shows how she's grown. she made a point and all of these zienna fans are being delusional about it.
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user10 | @user10
preach @user10

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user11 | @user11
yall say "hold them accountable!!" then turn around and make memes and death threats. vienna is so right because in the article about zayn (if she is talking about zayn) it stated how zayns friends came out and said he isn't a good place right now... obviously i am not excusing his actions but there's always a reason behind actions
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user12 | @user12
say it louder pleaseeeeee!! also i'm sorry but hookups are meant to be a one night thing... unless he promised anything else then he doesn't owe anyone anything

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user13 | @user13
i dont care what she meant. this is such a weird hill to die on. women came out and publicly stated how they felt worthless and vienna is out here defending a man?? yeah that's a huge no for me.
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viennaprescott | @viennaprescott
i really didn't want to comment on anything. but for clarity: my tweet was not about excusing anyone's behavior, and it definitely wasn't about silencing women who've been hurt.
i've been on the other side of a scandal before and i've felt how cruel the internet can be. that's what i was speaking about. my experience.
i understand the timing is terrible but either way this point needed to come across... we need to be more mindful about the way we talk to people when they're at their lowest. :)
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user14 | @user14
i told myself i would never become a vienna stan but here i am. clapping.

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user15 | @user15
it's so easy to forget that vienna was publicly humiliated back in july for something that she didn't do. and even before this girl got dogpiled for YEARS. she's allowed to develop a perspective.

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user16 | @user16
this is the start of viennas redemption arc and im so happy because she really deserved this

bella🦊

bella🦊
oh vi

vi🐻
before you start i understand it looks like
the tweet was me defending zayn and yes it
did play a tiny factor but i also have been
wanting to say this ever since devin

bella🦊
the timing? the wording? you knew
exactly how people were going to take
it

bella🦊
and i'm not bad because what you said
is not wrong but i do think that it wasn't
a good idea to tweet about it

bella🦊
especially what happened last time
when you were on twitter

vi🐻
i know i know. but i cant control how
people are going to interpret things

vi🐻
i just wanted to say it just to spread
awareness because i know how it feels
and its not a good feeling

bella🦊
ok yeah i get that

bella🦊
and i'm sorry for the way i spoke to
you yesterday and how i lowkey called
you out in the most aggressive way i
just love you and i can't watch you go
through it again

bella🦊
and i can only trust that you know
what you are doing and that you
know what's best for you

vi🐻
and i love you for that and thank you
i know you were just looking out for me
and that means more than you will ever
know

bella🦊
of course vi

bella🦊
i just have one more request from you.

vi🐻
yeah?

bella🦊
please try to stay away from twitter. you're
lucky your ass was correct in your tweet bc
if you weren't. you might've had to go on a
hiatus for another 2 years.

vi🐻
i hate you😭😭

vi🐻
but yeah don't worry this is the last
thing i will ever do for zayn

.❀。• *₊°。 ❀°。
𝐋𝐎𝐒 𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐋𝐄𝐒, 𝐂𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐀

𝗭𝗔𝗬𝗡

The nap wasn't supposed to be this deep. Just a quick twenty minutes, I'd told myself. Lay down, let the world blur out, recharge.

But I was out before I could finish the thought.

The past day has been... something to say the least. With accusations being thrown around about me being a "man-whore" or "breaking a new woman's heart every day," it got exhausting.

And the thing is, it's not even about whether it's true or not. People read what they want to read. Believe what they want to believe. The exhaustion doesn't come from proving them wrong. It comes from knowing it wouldn't matter even if I did.

That's why I needed this quick 20 minute nap.

Which turned into 6 hours.

I barely registered the way the sunlight had shifted through the blinds when I felt something thud lightly against my shoulder. Then again. Someone was poking me.

"Zayn."

I didn't open my eyes.

"Zayyyynnnn." Harry drawled, voice lazy. He's close, I caught a whiff of his cologne that smelt too strong.

Then Niall's voice cut in, louder and far less refined. "Dude. Wake up. We brought coffee."

I groaned, face still buried in the couch cushions, then rolled onto my back, squinting up at the two of them.

"How the fuck did you two even get in?"

"I brought coffee." Niall repeated like that answered the question.

"Leave it on the counter." I mumbled, eyes already threatening to close again.

"We also brought news." Harry added, his voice sing-songy.

That got my attention. Barely. I cracked one eye open and see the two of them looming like hawks.

"Good or bad?" I asked, voice rough with sleep.

"Depends," Niall shrugged, dropping into the armchair and cracking open his iced coffee. "Depends if you still care about what Vienna Prescott thinks."

That woke me up faster than anything else could have.

I sat up fast, rubbing the last bit of sleep from my face as I reached for my phone on the side table. My fingers fumbled as I unlocked it, before I can even process what exactly I'm looking for.

But before I could get to anything, Harry cut in.

"You didn't even let us tell you what happened."

I froze, thumb hovering mid-air.

I looked up at him, realizing just how eager I must've looked. Desperate, even. It's embarrassing. I can feel the heat climb up my neck.

When I glanced between Harry and Niall, they're both smirking, clearly holding back laughter. Harry raises an eyebrow. Niall gives me a smug little shrug.

I sighed, set my phone down carefully on my lap, and raised my hands in mock surrender. "Okay, fine. I'm sorry. You can go."

Harry put his coffee down dramatically, which made me suppress an eye roll.

"Thank you," he said, giving a little bow that made me roll my eyes for real. "Now. As I was saying before you practically lunged for your phone—"

"I didn't lunge."

"You did." Niall snorted. "You so did. It was actually a bit tragic."

"Do you want me to throw you out or—?"

"Do you want to hear what Vienna said or not?" Harry interrupted , grinning.

That shut me up real quick.

Harry pulled out his phone and walked over to hand it to me. This time, I took it without rushing. But my heart was pounding.

I had no idea what I'm was about to see on his phone.
'Depends if you still care about what Vienna Prescott thinks.' What the hell was that suppose to mean? Of course Niall had to speak in riddles.

I already know it's going to sting in that soft, sharp way only she can manage.

He scrolled quickly, then stopped and held the phone out.

"There."

I looked at the screen.

"accountability is necessary, but so is empathy!! you can call someone out without turning their pain into entertainment"

I blinked. Read it again. Then again.

And just like that, I realized I'd been holding my breath.

At first, I was scared.

Not for me, that ship had sailed. People were already dragging me across every platform they could log into. But Vienna? She had nothing to do with this. Not anymore. She hadn't said my name, hadn't tagged anyone, but anyone with two brain cells and a working Wi-Fi connection would figure it out.

Would they come for her now?

It wasn't even a defense, not really. She didn't excuse anything I'd done. She didn't deny the stories or attack the people posting them. She just... asked for humanity.

That was so her. I almost let out a laugh.

I swallowed hard, my fingers tightening around Harry's phone.

Niall must've noticed my discomfort, because he spoke up again. "Check the comments."

I hesitated, thumb already hovering.

It was bad to admit, but I'd been expecting the worst. I always did when it came to Vienna. She'd been the internet's punching bag for so long that, as much as I hated it, part of me had learned to expect it. To brace for it.

People loved outrage, especially when it involved someone like her.

But this time... it wasn't like that.

There were no knives out. No venom. No hashtags telling her to shut up or mind her business. Instead—

"This is such a mature take."
"Someone had to say it and it was Vienna, per usual."
"God, I missed Vienna Prescotts energy on here."

I blinked, scrolling slower now. The replies kept coming. Some were cautious, but most were thoughtful. Supportive, even. And not just of her, of the idea that maybe we didn't need to rip people apart to hold them accountable.

It was almost comical, usually I was the one jumping to her defense, even when she never asked. No one did. But I did it anyway.

And now she was the one doing it.

Well, not exactly. It was a stretch. But the timing and the wording, so deliberate in that very Vienna way, it made it hard not to believe it was for me.

I let out a slow breath and leaned back against the couch, still holding the phone.

"Did you see this one?" Niall asked, peering over my shoulder and tapping the screen to highlight a quote-tweet.

"Vienna developed Zayns level of defense."

I let out a quiet laugh.

"Did she mean to post it?" I asked out of nowhere, almost to myself.

Harry raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"I mean... maybe she meant to delete it after a few minutes. Maybe it was impulsive. Maybe—"

"Shut up," Niall groaned, tossing his head back dramatically in the armchair. "Just text her and say thanks or something."

I pressed my lips together. The other day, I'd thought about texting her when I was with Louis and Liam. I'd stared at her contact. Even typed something out. Then backspaced the whole thing.

And now here it was again. Same thought, different excuse.

Harry was still watching me. "You want to talk to her."

It wasn't a question.

Niall reached for his drink and took a long sip. "Well, she did it anyway. So what now?"

I was silent for a while.

Then I spoke.

"She deserves a thanks."

©𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐞