Forever | h.s.

Chapter 27

"Annabel, is it?" A voice spoke out. I looked up, and saw a familiar looking face, but I just couldn't remember his name.

"Yeah, that's me." I smiled.

"Hi, it's me, Mark. From the ice cream shop, remember?" He smiled.

"Oh yes! Now I remember!" I laughed, embarassed. "Sorry!"

"No worries. I haven't seen you recently, and I never had the chance to say goodbye to you." He smiled, leaning back in the cushioned chair. Memories of Harry pulling me out of the shop flooded back into my mind.

"Yeah, sorry about that. He's a little... a little aggressive sometimes." I chose my words carefully.

"Just a little," Mark laughed, with a hint of sarcasm in his voice. "I thought you said you didn't have a boyfriend." He smiled.

"I didn't, then." I responded. "Him and I, we're... it's confusing." I finished, not knowing how to explain our relationship. Mark nodded, but I could tell he was just as confused as I was.

"I see.." He spoke.

"Yeah," I sheepishly laughed. "That was something, wasn't it?"

"Sure was." Mark agreed. There was a moment of awkwardness between the two of us, as we sat in silence for a couple of seconds.

"Anyways, what are you doing here?" I spoke.

"You know, just getting some coffee. It's a nice day out, I thought I'd stop by. How about you?" He asked.

"Same with me, I just wanted something refreshing, and I also came here to think." I nodded.

"Thinking, huh?" He flashed a smile. "Is everything alright?"

"Oh yeah, everything's fine!" I lied. Mark raised an eyebrow, obviously not convinced. I sighed. "Alright, well, truth is, not really." I forced a small smile.

"Wanna talk about it?" He suggested politely.

"Well, the thing is, my family and I, we're members of a country club. We've been members for as long as I can remember. And every year, they hold an Annual Ball." I explained. "You see, my mother, she's... she's kinda strict, I guess you can say, and she's forcing me to bring a date."

"So bring... what's his name? Your boyfriend?"

"Harry." I clarified, earning a nod. "And that's the problem, Harry doesn't attend these sorts of things. It's 'just not his thing,'" I quoted. Mark nodded, bringing his hand up to his chin, rubbing the slight stubble.

"Well, why doesn't he want to go?" Mark asked.

"I don't know," I sighed. "And now I'm stuck, because I don't know who to bring, and my mother is going to be very mad if I show up without a date." I put my face in my hands, stressed. There was a brief moment of silence, before the thought hit me. "You can go with me!" I blurted out, shooting up from my seat. A couple of people in the café looked over in my direction, and Mark looked startled as well. I lowered myself, and sat back down, flushed.

"Um I don't think that's a good idea, considering you and... Harry?" He raised an eyebrow, and I nodded before he continued. "Considering you two didn't even date, and he still got jealous. But now that you are together, I don't think that's the best idea." He explained quite slowly. I sighed, knowing he was right.

"But my mother's going to kill me, if I don't find a date soon." I ran my fingers through my thin hair, as I looked for other possibilities. I heard Mark letting out a big sigh, before he began speaking again.

"Are you sure you want me to go with you?" He raised a brow. I looked over at him.

"Yeah, I mean I guess so, I don't have any other ideas. Plus, we're kinda friends... right?" I sheepishly smiled.