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SEPARATE WAYS
OVER THE COURSE of a few months, you had visited aunt alice a couple times (she had forced you) and you had helped with taking care of beth.
"laurie!" you yelled. "get up! happy christmas! beth's gotten better and mister brooke is bring mister march is back. oh, teddy it's truly a christmas miracle!"
"i'm up!" he said, grabbing you and slamming you down onto his bed to stop you jumping on it.
"let's go. just let me get ready."
after getting ready and spreading the news that she had gotten better as had her father, which was very amazing in fact, you, laurie, mr. laurence, and mr. brooke, made you way next door. you walked into the march household, determined to surprise them.
"here's another christmas gift for the march family," laurie spoke, his arm wrapped around yours.
mr. march came in, leaning on mr. brooke.
"oh my god! father!" amy yelled, jumping up and dropping her bowl of popcorn on the floor.
they've embraced him in a hug.
"my little women." mr. march said, pulling back from the hug to look at his girls. "how you've grown. oh beth, merry christmas my dear. merry christmas to each of you."
"merry christmas father!" jo said, pleased, tears brimming in her eyes.
you sat in between beth and amy, in good spirits because of the holiday. you spent the rest of the day giving out presents.
you gave laurie a beautiful watch and you had gotten a new dress from mr. laurence, a painting from amy, a story from jo, a hand-sewn doll from beth, and a pair of shoes from meg. you thanked everyone for your gifts and left the house happily.
"i'll give you your gift later." laurie whispered in your ear, as you trudged back home. you looked at him quizzically but he just look straight ahead.
"i'm leaving for school." laurie said, once you had gotten home.
"what?" you asked, taken aback. "college? you're studying to be a graduate?"
"i'll be gone for four years." he said, solemnly. perhaps it was time to tell him you were going to live in london with aunt alice.
"oh. well i guess we're both going our separate ways. i'm leaving for europe as well. aunt march wants me to meet with oliver chadwick again," laurie winced at the name, "she wants me to marry him, teddy."
"but you won't?" he asked, notching your crestfallen expression.
"how can i, when my heart belongs to another?" your eyes widened at your words. great job [ y/n ], you've done it now. but thankfully, laurie didn't comment on it. he just stared at the floor in deep thought.
"when i return, i'm going to ask jo to marry me." your heart broke. you doubted she would say no. after you two made up, she promised to try liking laurie. for your sake, you asked her. all you wanted was for laurie to be happy. you could hardly figure that he would be happy with you. and he was really in love with her.
"that's wonderful!" you said, swallowing your pride and your feelings with it. "i'm really happy for you laurie, truly,"
"thank you. as my best friend, you don't know how much it means to me." teddy hugged you and you sighed, wanting to remember his touch and memorize the feel of his arms around you.
"i've got to pack. i'll visit once in a while, but i suppose i won't see you really see you until you're finished with school."
"i'll miss you, choupette." he looked onto your eyes intently, making you stare back into his with the same fire. eyes softening, you set your hand on his.
"i'll miss you as well, teddy. don't forget me at university!" you called, already making your way out of the room.
laurie suddenly remembered something a jumped up. "wait! i've forgotten to give you your present."
you stopped and turned, walking back into the room steadily. in his hands was a beautiful necklace. a gold chain with a ring held on it. the ring's band was also gold, adorned with a small sapphire.
"oh laurie it's wonderful! it must've cost you a fortune!" you gasped, bringing him close in a hug.
"it was nothing. truly. anything for my best girl." he grinned. you turned and handed the necklace back to him. nimble fingers in brushed your neck creating feather like touches and your cheeks blazed. he clipped the necklace around your neck and you turned. the ring sat dangerously low at your cleavage and laurie swallowed.
"well goodnight," you said as you stepped back from him.
"yes, goodnight. have a safe trip." with that, you turned around and walked off into your room. laurie couldn't deny the tension between the both of you, but it must've been a heat of the moment thing.
you sighed as you packed your dresses in a large trunk and fell into your desk chair. how you wished you hadn't given laurie your blessing.
IRENE SPEAKS 🥺🤠
ahh act two starts two chapters from now!! can't wait! also, how do you guys like the growing tension between laurie and the reader? xoxo <3
