MIDNIGHT RAIN | nick nelson [on hold]

Chapter Fifteen

BUT THAT MEANS WE HAVE TO TALK ABOUT US

AND I DON'T KNOW IF YOU'VE NOTICED, BUT I DON'T LIKE TALKING

[1.08]

Venus liked to joke that she has never once gotten over anything that happened in her life. It made sense as the girl held onto grudges longer than she could a boyfriend and she loved to write songs about things that happened years ago if it meant she could write one singular cool line. It took her weeks to get over the boy who gave her her first kiss despite him genuinely not caring for her at all. But at least she got the line "I was fifteen, now I'm fifteen and a fool" for her song Outdoor Pool.

But Venus did in fact get over it.

Like she did with every life problem or minor inconvenience she faced, she wrote a song. Then, all the positive feedback she got from her peers at school and other followers gave her back the confidence she needed.

And that's how Venus learned to move on from things. She just needed to write a few songs and the pain she felt in the moment no longer seemed so bad. It seemed to work out for literally every situation she faced. As fifteen turned to sixteen, Venus put more trust in her songwriting and accepted that maybe not everything would go her way. She went from the innocent and bright eyed who always sat at the front of the class to the gloomy girl who rolled up her skirt for attention and had a glare that scared teachers. Venus King had changed a lot since she was young, and only a few were able to see the girl she used to be behind her guarded walls.

"Elle!"

Venus smiled brightly, pulling her beloved friend into a tight hug. She loved that Higgs and Truham combined schools for their sports days seeing as the amount of girls at truham was much smaller than the amount of boys. It was easier to do it this way, especially since the schools were in walking distance of each other. It was one of the reasons Venus wanted to come today, knowing her friends would be here with her.

"Vee!" Elle beamed, "God, I'm glad to see you smiling after you posted that sad song last night."

"It was an old song," Venus told her, "I'm glad you're here. Ms. Singh is going to kill me when she finds out I only signed up for the short distance runs."

"You don't want to show off these legs?" Elle teased, poking Venus' thigh.

"You know, I know Harry got suspended but it's just not the same without him making a comment on how short my shorts are," Venus said. "I'm going to go find Charlie. Tao is around here somewhere so can you please tell him to try and talk to Charlie. He is spiraling and I've got so much on my plate right now."

"Of course," Elle laughed, "I'll see you later?"

"Duh!"

Venus walked around, scanning the crowd for Charlie. She wanted to find him so she could have some moral support. It would be her worst nightmare to run into Nick alone. She doesn't even know what she would say to him. Sorry I ignored all your texts, let's date now? God, she was a mess.