Written in the stars (Rewriting)

6. The festival

When compared to the curiosity that sparkled through her eyes, the stars looked like nothing but a litter of dust, scattered carelessly throughout the night sky.

It wasn't late, just yet. The sun had only just faded and the night was still young.

Esmeralda watched curiously through hooded eyes as friends and families came together in celebration of their town's history.

As per the theme, the town looked centuries younger as did it's folk.
Everyone, from the crawling children to the silver haired seniors, came out on this special night in their Sunday's best fine linen. Perfectly dolled up.

Dressed in a beautiful, babydoll white dress, rose gold denim jacket and matching pumps. Esmeralda sat among a table of widowed woman and divorced ladies: friends of Aunt Maddie's.

They sat near an old oak tree, dressed in an assortment of fairy lights, making it looked as if it were dress by stars.

"They must be at the lake as we speak." Chirped one of the woman, a short wrinkled lady with dark shades and short, boyish read hair.

She took a drag from the cigarette in her left hand, and blew out the vile content, polluting the air around her. Emerald scrunched her nose in disgust.

"Don't be stupid." Spat the lady on her right, a skinny blonde lady with a sequence throw over jacket and lipstick, three shades too bright.

"Oh, not that nonsense Doris." Dismissed aunt Maddie.

Esmeralda spent her whole duration here wondering how her dear ol auntie Maddie became acquainted with such woman. Sure, they must have been wonderful people, but their aura was something so dark, vile and negative.

"Oh God Maddison, you're always such a downer." Doris took another drag.

"That must be why my husband left me for a woman twice his age." The tone in her aunt's voice shocked Esmeralda more that she thought it could.

Doris stayed still.

A chorus of high pitched giggles and gasps, adding to the smugness of her aunt Maddie's smirk.

Catching sight of Esmeralda, aunt Maddie regained her posture, and masked her vile expression with something innocent and angylic. It phased Esmeralda.

Doris was fuming, but before she even had a chance to utter a word out of her smoke infested mouth, Esmeralda spoke up.

"What's happening at the lake aunt maddie?"

"Hasn't your aunt Maddie told you about the stories girl? " Alma, a black woman with a frizzy afro said, not even glancing at Esmeralda, but looking at aunt Maddie instead.

"Remember the story of how the Angel's met." aunt Maddie ignored the group and spoke to Esmeralda alone.

She nodded.

"It was a night, just like this. The sky was dark and the stars were shining. It was a warm night, the cozy sorta warm so one of the Angel's decided to journey into the forest." Aunt maddie recited.

Mentally, Esmeralda sighed. She had never been one to belive in fairytales.

"Little did the bugger know that there'd be someone there." Another woman from the table added.

"A girl sat on the bed of the lake, watching the stars reflect againt the water."

"A beautiful lady they say!"

"When that foolish angel saw her, he fell inlove. He broke the one rule set by the gods."

"And the rest my child, it's all history." Finished aunt Maddie.

Esmeralda was clueless as to how to feel. They all seemed so serious when resisting the story, and the resentment in their voice felt so strong.

But it was only a story.

"Well enough of this, let's go and see the dances." Alma's words sounded like a suggestion but the way she stood up and made her way pass the table left no room for argument.

"You coming Emeralda?" Aunt Maddie didn't even look back before following her friends leaving Esmeralda with her thoughts when she turned down her aunts requests.

Finishing the last bit of vanilla milkshake, Esmeralda began making her way through the ground.

It wasn't long that she'd been walking, but pushing through the crowd made it feel like forever.

Until it hit her. The musky smell of the forest, but this time topped with a smell much for alluring. It made her hungry. Hungry for answers, and satisfaction.

Never has a ton of trees made her feel so dizzy with delight. She had to find the source of such an infatuating perfume.

So she followed it, pass the trees and away from civilization. The barking of the crowd and thumping of the music faded into nothing but an unnoticeable background track.

She walked in a carefully, show pace following the smell. Ignorant to the fact that she was almost at the lake.

The very lake at which the stories all began.

**
Another update. Yay?

I've reached 600 reads. I repeat 600 bloody reads. Thank you all so much. I literally couldn't have dont it without you guys reading this.

I'm curious now, what do you think about the book this far?

Question: should I look into getting this published?

Till next time ❤

Make good choices!

Virgo ❤