Chasing Freedom {Book 3: Chasing Butterflies}

Chapter 7: A Dinner From Hell

Hey everyone. I am a terrible person and I am just now updating this after a huge hiatus... Anyways, I'm really sorry for it. It has been chaotic around here (between class, homework, work, the wedding, and moving now on top of that), and I haven't gotten much accomplished anywhere that didn't involve any of those things as of recent. But my midterms are done now, so I can write for a bit, and I got this done. Enough rambling from me here; hope you all enjoy this!

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"You know that hiding ain't gonna keep you safe, because the tears on your face- they leak and leave a trace."-Levitate, Hollywood Undead

Audrey stared at the letter in her hands, still wondering exactly how she should take it. She had read it several times already, and she just couldn't decide how she felt about it. By all means, she should've been glad her friend finally told her about what was going on, yet at the same time, Audrey was still furious she hadn't been one of the first to know about it.

The girl tossed the letter from Krystie onto the table, shaking her head. Supposedly, Krystie had wanted to get together that evening, along with Draco and Fred, for dinner. Audrey honestly wasn't sure how the evening would transpire. Last time they had all been together, Draco and Fred had gotten along fine, but with all the new drama, it was hard to tell what would happen. Her husband didn't mind going, or so he said, but it didn't make Audrey any less worried about the outcome.

Audrey glanced over her shoulder, trying to catch a glance at the clock. 5:36. The girl sighed. Less than thirty minutes remained before they were supposed to meet at a restaurant in Diagon Alley. Audrey stood, brushing out some of the creases in her shirt, not that it mattered anyways. The pregnancy was finally starting to show and none of her clothes were fitting her properly anymore, so her shirt was just going to roll right back to where it was after a few moments. One day soon, she planned on remedying that, but for now she had to make do with what she had. Before leaving the room, she snatched Draco's jacket from the hook beside the door, immediately throwing it on and zipping it up over her stomach.

She made her way downstairs, immediately spotting Draco speaking with Artemis in hushed tones about something. Audrey didn't want to interrupt, so she stood at the foot of the stairs, waiting for one of them to notice her standing there. She didn't have to wait long; both of them looked up at her after a few seconds had passed.

"I take it you're ready to head out?" Draco asked.

Audrey nodded. "As ready as I'm going to be," she sighed.

Draco raised an eyebrow, curious by her response. Normally Audrey wasn't so uncaring about things, especially not dinner with a friend- even one she was mad at. "You really don't want to go, do you?"

The girl shrugged. "I could live without going out in public, but... sometimes you have to do things you don't want to. Mainly... going out in public to see people."

The boys exchanged glances. "Since when did you become a hermit?" Artemis inquired, raising an eyebrow.

Audrey shrugged. "Kind of always been," she muttered. "I just know how to be social sometimes."

No one said anything for a moment, but the Draco spoke again. "Well... we better get going. I would really hate for them to beat us there," he stated. The blond boy extended his arm, offering his hand to Audrey. The girl took his hand in hers, mentally preparing herself to Apparate. Draco took a deep breath before looking at Artemis and saying, "We'll be back shortly."