𝐎𝐂𝐄𝐀𝐍 𝐄𝐘𝐄𝐒 ━ shawn hunter¹

10│TRAIN OF FOOLS

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❛ ᴏᴄᴇᴀɴ ᴇʏᴇꜱ​​​​​​​​​​. ❜ ° . ༄
- ͙۪۪˚   ▎❛ 𝐓𝐄𝐍 ❜   ▎˚ ͙۪۪̥◌
»»————- ꒰ ᴛʀᴀɪɴ ᴏғ ғᴏᴏʟs ꒱


❝ HAPPY NEW YEAR, SHAWNIE ❞

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Juliet had been in a gloomy mood all Christmas. She'd hardly smiled during any of the usual rituals and had seemed especially lackluster when giving Shawn his traditional Christmas present. She felt as if all of the joy had been sucked out of her and she was just tired all the time. Her mother had done her best to cheer her up with Christmas cookies and home movies but even the red-haired woman had been distracted and her attention was flighty. It was now approaching New Year's and Shawn had made it his resolution to cheer up his best friend.

The redhead was currently spending the day with him at Turner's, though (unusually) he'd been the one doing most of the talking. As he returned to the couch with a bowl of popcorn, he set it down with a loud thud, causing the girl to jump and her head to snap towards the sound. "Alright, that's it!" he exclaimed loudly, flopping down on the couch next to her.

"What's it?" the girl asked, but it was devoid of the usual curiosity.

"You've been moping around all holiday and I'm just not gonna allow it when New Year's comes around. We're gonna party in style," the boy informed her, "I can even ask my uncle and see if his limo's free."

Juliet sighed and sank against the couch cushions. "That sounds fun, have a good time."

The boy turned and grasped her hand and gave her arm a gentle tug. "No, no, no, Julie. You're not getting out of this. You're gonna be my date," he told her firmly. His eyes flicked away from her face as he realized the word he'd used (though he made no move to correct it.)

The redhead apathetically watched him tug on her arm gave a deeper sigh. "There's no way you're letting me stay home, is there?"

"Nope. You're gonna come celebrate New Year's with Cory and me."

"Wouldn't you rather have a date that— y'know, is an actual date?"

Shawn's expression grew serious as he looked at the girl. "Julie, there's no one else I'd rather spend New Year's with," he said gently, "you don't even have to be super festive. All you have to do is dress up. . . please?"

The girl's eyes closed for a moment before she opened them again. "Fine."

🌎🌎🌎

In the afternoon on New Year's, Juliet started to get ready for her night out. She couldn't help but feel a little excited at the thought of spending the evening with her best friends— something that she hadn't done for quite a while— and Shawn had used the word 'date' though she knew he hadn't meant it like that. It would be her first New Year's out which she also looking forward to.

Jack had asked her to spend New Year's with him while his parents hosted their annual party but Juliet had (rather happily, which had caused him to be suspicious) declined. She was almost glad that Shawn was forcing her to go since she'd had a legitimate reason to say no to Jack's invite.

She sifted through the clothes in her now-full closet which, before last summer, had been only half-filled with mostly pants and a few skirts. Now, there was an even variety of different styles and outfits that she could chose from and she had never been more grateful to Dalya and her generous gift.

The dress she chose was knee-length with a pale pink background, decorated with silver-sequined squares that went nicely with her red hair. Juliet had decided to French braid the right side of the red strands and pull the remaining hair over her other shoulder to have a half-up-half-down look. In a spur-of-the-moment decision, she chose a pair of low heels to add to the 'firsts' of the night. As Juliet entered the main living area, her mom looked up from where she was putting things into a decorative bag that went with her own fancy dress.