HI! I will be uploading more i promise i just have been busy. Remember to vote and comment if you can. It makes me excited to write the next chapter so- just saying that i appreciate all of you that comment so frequently.
I hope you enjoy this chapter:) Basically a lil filler, next chapter will be sort of big.
<3 IT WONT POST SO IF YOU READ THIS BE HAPPY COS IT WAS HARD WORK GETTING THIS TO POST.
lottie's pov.
"You coming?" I ask her as she stands slightly awkwardly at the school steps.
She nods quickly, skipping down a few of the steps to meet me and Mason. Solana and I had spent a lot of today together, laughing a lot, talking about our weekend plans and it's been really fucking nice.
I was exhausted when I got to school, I am not going to lie. After sneaking in last night I just collapsed down on my bed, not doing any of my night routine.
So when I woke up this morning, I was grumpy.
But I hid my grumpiness from my mother because she would give me this 'I told you you shouldn't stay out late' look.
So yeah, I dragged myself through school fully wrapped up in my misery until lunchtime came and I remembered that Solana and I were planning to get lunch.
Lunch was good, it felt like the first time we properly got to chat, get to know each other. Despite the fact we had been texting all week, it was really nice to feel her energy again. It's different over text.
And now, the people from tea were all heading to Nova's gallery café to go through the assembly one last time together after school. It's tomorrow. I invited Solana, she had homework to do and I just- thought why not bring her along. I like spending time with her.
"So are these your friends?" She whispers nodding to Mase, Ava and Poppy who were getting into his car.
I nodded slightly. "Yeah, we've been doing theatre together from the beginning."
"So not like Ellie and Scarlett and-"
"Oh." I say. I shrug and we start walking to Solana's car.
She drives. Which is very helpful seeing as I can't.
"I have a few different groups of friends." I explain.
She nods. "So you just tend to get on with a lot of people?"
I shrug. "A few people don't like me, but yeah, like I try."
She smiles slightly amused at me and nods for me to get in her car, I just slide in and immediately as she settles and turns the car on, I am going through the CDs.
"Do you not have Bluetooth?" I ask her, flicking through the small case.
"Oh I do, but I like the CDs, I found all these old CDs in my father's collection so I stole a few."
I nod and look at the radio, trying to figure out how to access where to put the CD in.
She laughs and presses a button, revealing to me the little slot.
I smile back and go back to choosing a album.
"How's everything with Nathan?" She says quietly. "I avoided asking the question at lunch, but I wanted to check in... like there's been a lot of rumours going around."
"Oh yeah, just ignore the rumours," I tell her.
"So they're just rumours?"
"I-" I laugh a little. "I said to ignore them, not that they weren't true."
"Yikes Lottie." She says softly and she places her hand across us and rubs my arm a little, looking at me sympathetically.
I just smile reassuringly.
I think I am almost over it to be honest. Like we're doing good.
"It's all good." I tell her and her hand resumes back to the steering wheel.
"So this is your aunt's gallary?" She asks and I just nod, explaining briefly that she's my mum's friend but I grew up with them referring to her as Aunty Nove.
She smiles and looks at me, her eyes are dark but bright in the winter sun. I just admire them pretty openly.
"You have really pretty eyes." I say softly.
I watch her lips pull up and I mumble a small. "And lips."
"Stop." She laughs, shaking her head at me and I just smile, watching. "You know, I noticed you on my first day."
I grin, watching her side glance at me as she pulls down the seafront road.
"You did?"
"Yeah you had on some costume."
"Oh yeah, the costume for the spring show. We had been trying them on before lunch and I snuck off."
She nods a little. "I watched you at lunch like for a second, you were cuddling one of your friends, like pouring your affection out and it was just cute. But obviously then I still was with Danni".
I smile slightly coyly.
"And then at the party, you were just really hot and I decided to just go for it."
Oh the party. I wince. I definitely wish I had stayed with her.
"Oh, did you end up hooking up with Scar's brother?"
Solana's eyes widen. "That was her brother?"
I laugh, saying yeah.
She nods. "Yeah I did. I was majorly rebounding though." She says. "I explained that to you, right?"
I nodded. "Yeah you said your girlfriend broke up with you or something?"
"Mhm." The drive from school to the seafront was not long, we were almost there.
"How's the hurt."
She smiles, amused at the way I said it. She shrugged. "Not great, but not terrible. Plus I really enjoy spending time with you. Today has been nice."
"Well, I had a good day too." I agree a little and Solana pulls into the library car park, which was close to the gallery.
"Does your family know about..." She starts and my head falls to the side a little in curiosity about what she was going to say.
"About what?"
"Like are you out to them?"
Oh.
I nod.
"Yeah I mean, I think so." I say.
We get out of the car and grab our school bags. "What do you mean you think so." She laughs.
"Like I just mean, my mum and dad definitely know, my siblings probably, I don't know. And my other members of the family either know because my parents have said something, or they'll find out when I introduce them to someone who isn't a male."
"Ah I see." She says, smiling slightly. "My dad knows, but my mum doesn't."
"Oh?" I ask.
Solana dresses like she is comfortably out. Not that I think bisexual people have a way that they dress, I just mean like... I don't know what I mean. She has wristbands with the pride colours, and I just always immediately thought that was attractive.
"I live with my dad. My mum lives miles away and isn't impressed with the way I do my makeup, my hair, let alone the other things, you see?"
"I see." I say gently. "But your dad? Is he good?"
"Yeah he's an angel." She smiles and we head up an alley, leading to the seafront and we walk past a few shops to get into the gallery.
We weren't the first people here, instead, the rest of the tea group call us over as soon as we arrive and November who is pouring coffee and taking money from them all just gives me a small smile when I come in.
We haven't talked since the other day when she started to tell mum about my cheek, and we didn't say anything yesterday when they were all round.
She just passes me and presses her hand down on my back, gently saying hello before going back to the counter to prepare more coffee.
"That your aunt?" Solana asks and I nod. "She's pretty."
"Yeah I know." I smile, sitting down next to her and next to Mase.
I didn't really need to be here, I didn't have any lines tomorrow, just the singing. Which we were going to rehearse later in the evening anyway.
But they wanted me to come and help so I am here.
Solana takes out her science books, puts some earphones in and I watch her get cracking on a test that she missed. She's being made to do it as homework, but she gets to use the textbook, so she'll be fine.
I turn to Mase and he glances at Solana next to me, his eyebrows wiggling, and I reach to stop them.
We stare at each other, my fingers gripping the flesh around his eyebrow.
"Chill out." I say.
He grins and pushes my hand away.
November comes and offers me coffee, which I accept and so does Solana. We had pushed two workbenches together, just like we usually do.
November doesn't mind us using this place as an after school social space because she gets money from us buying her coffee and cakes, plus all the kids that come here tell their parents about her art and she gets more customers so she's happy.
I am sleepy, I had such a late night. So as everyone goes through the assembly I just sit here slightly blankly.
I see Nova just sat at her desk so I stand and wander towards her, she glances up at me and gives me a slightly amused smile.
"Where did you go last night missy? You look exhausted."
"I look great, don't be mean to me."
"Of course you look great Lots, you just look tired."
"I am tired." I admit, leaning against the front of her desk. "I want to sleep."
"Go and sleep."
"Can't. I have to help Mase and Ava."
She just smiles at me softly and then she nods down to the vision board in front of her, pull of ideas and lists. "You think I should do a meal, for the investors, or open house gallery tour thing."
"What do you mean?" I ask, a little lost.
"I am getting some new investors next month and I want to celebrate and thank them. But I am unsure whether to do them a sit-down formal dinner in the function room or whether to do a more buffet type thing with wine and have a lot of art to show."
"You into ceramics Nova? Because I know someone who is amazing at making pottery and-"
She laughs at me. "You're not helping."
"Okay okay. Sorry. Definitely the second option. You should do the open gallery thing. They must like art or at least are interested in the money behind it. Show yourself off a little."
"I just don't want them to think I am trying to get them to buy the paintings, they're already giving me money."
"Why don't you create some pieces that you could offer up to them for free? Like open gallery literally meaning they take some art away? Or you could do a class with the investors. Show them what you're like with your art students?"
She smiles at me. "These are great ideas, but probably not suitable for the type of investors. They're grumpy old men with too much money."
"Maybe the art will make them less grumpy." I shrug.
"Maybe." She smiles. "How are you doing?"
"I'm good." I say. "And I am so serious about the ceramics, like I've seen them and they're beautiful.."
"I haven't had a sculpture exhibition in a while." She nods. "We have a room coming up free in a few weeks. Tell me their details and I'll look into their work-"
"They're very amateur..." I say. "He doesn't- he sells it on Etsy occasionally but he doesn't study or-"
She shrugs. "That's how I started out. Just get him to ring me."
I don't know if I can get Sutton to ring her but I nod very quickly, smiling.
Nova gets a phone call and I back away, going to sit down back by Solana again and she smiles and gives me some space. She's now on her laptop, doing some collage searches, I think.
I try and concentrate back on my friends, I swear. But I am falling asleep right now.
I yawn, feeling a little headache. Achey. I am drained.
"Okay, should we go through the song? Seeing as it's just us in here now." Mase says. "You guys need to practice more."
"We don't want to over practice Mason," I say gently. "Plus my throat hurts and I don't wanna sing."
"Your throat hurts...?" He says, staring at me slightly concerned.
Yeah, one thing you don't do is complain about an ailment the night before a show. It gives everyone anxiety.
But this was a bloody assembly. It's fine.
"I am fine, just tired. But I don't want to lose my voice."
"How is everyone else feeling?" Mason asks everyone who is supposed to be singing and they all nod and say variations meaning that they feel fine.
"Okay Lottie, sit it out." He says. "But everyone else, let's go through the song."
Okay... maybe I am a control freak. But I don't like that he's taking over.
This is hilarious because the only reason I don't like it, is that it's usually me being like this.
But I know what I am doing. Whereas Mase just accidentally dominates i think. He doesn't know necessarily... I know more. Okay no, I should stop thinking like that. I don't want anyone's voice to become exhausted before tomorrow. We had practice today already. We sang the song at least four times...
I decide not to fight him. I am too tired and I don't want to fall out with them before having to work with them all day tomorrow.
So instead I turn and look at Solana's screen.
"Where have you applied?" I ask her.
"Just a few art schools. Much to my mother's distress." She says. "She wants me to be a lawyer or something."
"Oh goodness." I say.
"I could easily be a lawyer, but I'd be so depressed. I want to do what I like not something that's boring and draining and-" She shrugs. "It's what she does."
I nod, slightly surprised at the confidence.
"I can't imagine being smart enough that the prospect of being a lawyer sounds easy." I say, amused. "You must have a lot of brains."
"I do, not that your school's teachers see that though. They think I am stupid."
I furrow my eyebrows. "What do you mean?"
"Skin colour." She whispers to me, unimpressed. "This town is small and apparently full of prejudices."
I-Well ok. I nod. I do understand what she's saying. Of course, I do. But I love our town, and I dont remember my brother's ever struggling at school. I dont know
"They keep giving me the easier assignments, tiptoeing around me." Solana says, shaking her head a little.
"Oh, they might just be doing that because you are new, my mum knows how hard it is coming in and out of school so she-"
She looks up at me. "Please don't make excuses for it."
She looks sorta hurt, honestly and I nod slowly. "Okay, I won't."
Solana nods looking back at her screen and I pout a little at her, at the weird vibe between us right now. I lean closer and pout more, trying to be cute. "Are you mad?"
Her lips tug up a little and I lean on my elbow on the table, sliding closer and looking up at her face. "Don't be mad at me."
"I am not mad, chill." She smiles and I relax a little, then practically rest my head on the table in tiredness.
"Lottie." November calls, the rest of the group still singing and probably annoyed that she was calling over them.
I turn and get up, dragging my feet over to her and she laughs at me again.
"Sweetheart, go to bed."
"In your gallery?"
She rolls her eyes at me and then she tells me not to worry, to go and sit back down.
"No, no what did you need?"
She narrows her eyes and she glances at my friends.
"You need them to go?"
Nova shakes her head. "No I need to go and order flowers for the function this weekend, but I don't want to leave you in charge of everything when you're this tired."
"Just give me the list." I laugh. I always go run errands for her. There is a flower shop or well plant shop next door and November always uses them to decorate the gallery when she's doing a function.
"Are you doing it for your investors that we just talked about?"
"Oh no, I have a kids birthday party Sunday."
"Oh valentines?"
"Yeah, it's gonna be cute."
"Okay." I smile. "List? I'll go order them."
"You are a star. Here." She says and hands me a list of everything that they needed to know.
So I just go and head out, not grabbing my coat, it's not too cold out.
I also don't tell people where I am going, but I'll be quick.
Next doors plant shop was so cute, like the front of the shop was just flowers and flowers and bunches and perfectly put together mixtures of wildflowers. I think the owners must grow all their own flowers and plants out the back. One half of the shop wall is just shelves with plant pots and cool different plants that range in different tones of green.
I know that out the back they have a massive greenhouse type extension, you can see it from behind the shops, but the car park. It looks so cool.
You can't see much into it, just a lot of green.
I push the door open and no one is at the counter so I close the door shut behind me, trying to gain attention. It's cold im here, I wrap my arms around myself and walk to the counter.
"Just coming." A warm voice calls from the back and I just place the order on the counter and go and admire the rows and rows of flowers.
They're all colour coordinated down one side, going from blues to purples to reds and oranges, yellows. The middle ile are already mixed coloured bouquets. They're beautiful. All of them. I lift my hand to a petal and a small laugh comes from the counter.
"Hi dear. It's Lottie right? Careful, they're delicate."
I turn my head confused, looking at the lady behind the counter and then my eyes widen when I recognise her.
"Mrs Carter." I say. "Oh I didn't realise you worked here."
"It's been my shop forever." She smiles amused. "What can I do for you?"
"Could Nova, from next door, order some flowers?" I ask walking back to the counter and I just show her the list.
"Oh of course." She says warmly. She looks like Francesca, with slightly lighter hair though. She was beautiful too, I notice. I can see Rowan in her too.
"You have the same-" I gesture to my eye, looking at hers. "As your son." She has the same mixture of colours, the green invading into the brown in her right eye, I stare a little and she smiles at me.
"Yes, it's a genetic thing in our family."
"It's beautiful," I say quietly and she smiles at me, bigger this time.
"I wanted to thank you, for the many different times you've helped my son this past month. I never knew you were involved next door. Are you working?" She asks. "I absolutely adore Miss Harrington and her husband."
That's when Rowan walks out from the back, his eyes slightly surprised to see me, but they flick down to the order sheet and so he signs a small hello to me and then looks at his mum. He signs something quickly, she replies in the same form of communication that makes me lost.
But then he rolls his eyes at her a little and looks at me.
"My mother wants to invite you to her dinner party. You and your parents."
She scoffs, signing harshly.
Rowan pulls a slightly distressed face. "Apologies. I want to invite you."
I am biting my tongue in amusement, he's so being forced to invite us.
Mrs Carter smiles at me brightly. "I am doing a dinner party, to get to know more people here. I only just moved down into town properly."
I wonder if her name is still Mrs Carter. I just remmeebred that their parents are no longer together. I was thinking about this, but Rowan must have thought I was confused about her saying that she just moved into town.
"We used to live in the next town, travel into work and school." Rowan informs me and I smile back.
I didn't know they were so close. Like they're next door to Nova's.
I grew up in that gallery. It's just strange to think that the stranger from the tracks who is no longer a stranger grew up right next door too.
I nod. "I will tell my mum- um- you have my mum's number, don't you?" I say. "You could always call her, she loves meeting new people and my dad will do what she wants him to do so-"
Mrs Carter laughs at that and she nods. "Okay sweetheart, I have taken down the order. Tell Nova that it will be ready tomorrow."
"Okay, thank you..." I say and I look back at the flowers. "I might buy a bunch for my room, I forget how beautiful they are."
"Go for it, I need to..." Mrs Carter says and Rowan nods.
"I can check her out." He says.
"Okay, don't be too long I need your arms to lift."
"Alright." Rowan laughs a little and his mother disappears back out the back and I walk over to the yellow flowers again.
"I was exhausted at school today." I say. "But I didn't see you."
"I stayed home."
"Why?" I ask.
"I- just did." He says. Instead of explaining. "What ones do you want Lottie?"
"Yellow I think."
"Okay but-" He walks back out from behind the counter and comes to stand beside me. "What type?"
I look up at him, wondering how much he knows about all this. "What do you suggest? Tell me a little about them."
"Um okay, these are called Avens." He points to the smaller yellow flowers, with red-ish centres. "They're cool looking, but the ratio to flower to stem and leaf is quite low if that's not what you're into."
I smile, listening.
He moves along a little. "This one is called a sword lily. These are cool because they can grow up to five feet tall, obviously, these are shorter but I just like them for the fact they're like- long."
I look up at him again and he glances down, then nods to the sunflowers and he makes me look at them.
"These are Helianthus, well sunflowers, but their scientific name is cooler. I like the sunflower fields we have around here, we can never get ours to come out as bright as the ones just out of town. Do you know what I mean? The field?"
"Yeah I know it." I say quietly. He's so geeky.
Like he knows so much.
He nods to the next one. "This one's called the bearded iris, they look beautiful with normal iris', like the yellow and purple looks good, that would be a nice bunch." He says.
I just shrug, interested in how he knows all this.
"Daffodils are really early this year." He says and lifts his hand to them. "They might not last long because yeah, it's a little strange we got them to grow so early."
"When do they normally grow?" I ask.
"Springtime. Or okay Easter ish- I guess they're not that early."
I nod to the next flower and he smiles slightly. "These are called Persian buttercups."
"They're so bright."
He picks one out of the bunch and he lifts it under his hand, showing how the glow of the petals actually reflects onto the skin.
I smile nostalgically. "You remember when as a kid you'd pick the little version of these and stick them under someone's chin to see if they liked butter or not?"
He smiles and he moves the flower closer and I lift my chin.
Rowan places the flower under my chin, resting on my neck and I smile, meeting his eye.
"Do I like butter?"
He's a little close. His eyes glance from me to my neck, his eyes lingering, seeing the glow.
"Apparently so." He says quietly. "Do you?"
"Love it." I breathe, a little amused.
Rowan smiles slightly back at me and he takes it away, placing it back down.
"And then we have yellow Roses, of course." He says. "And then these one's have a cool name-" He lightly trails his fingers over the petal of a smaller flower. "They're called black eyed Susan's."
I laugh a little at that, smiling at him widely. "You have a lot of knowledge of flowers."
"Yeah I do." He chuckles. "Bit random right?"
"Just a tad."
"It's weird- actually talking to you."
"I know." I say back quietly. "I miss your hands and my confusion."
His eyebrow quirks as if I said something funny and I just stand there blinking innocently. He cracks a smile, shaking his head and he nods to the last few flower types.
"Tulips are always good." He says. "Marigolds look really nice, they have a similar glow and they admittedly smell nice. Oh and these ones are kinda cool, they're called leopard plants, they don't look that great in a bouquet though."
"Why?" I ask.
"Too bulky."
I feel bad for them.
"So what can I get you?" He asks, walking back to grab out some paper to wrap the flowers in.
"Er.... Could I have a couple from each type? I will feel guilty now I think if I pick some but not the other. Like I don't want- I don't know. I just want one or two of each yellow flower."
"Oh. I mean yeah I can do that, but it'll look a bit messy."
"I don't care about that." I tell him.
"How come you're next door?" He asks me quietly as I stand and watch him take out a couple of each flower, inspecting each and making sure they were ok.
He was doing it so delicately.
"Oh my- November, the lady who owns the gallery is my aunt. Sort of. Family friend. More like. My oldest brother and her daughter and like together- practically engaged, so family, you see?"
I rambled that. But he nods as if he understood what I meant.
"Why are you ordering flowers for her?" He asks.
"Oh because she had a function Sunday and because I am-" I pause realising I've been a while now and I just left Solana there. "Working with some friends next door."
He nods.
"You can join us, if you like?" I offer. Knowing he doesn't want anyone to know we know each other, but wanting to invite him anyway.
He raises an eyebrow and gestures to the shop. "Working."
"Oh, yeah." I laugh at myself. "I am tired."
"Me too." He admits. "But I haven't been able to serve customers for weeks so- I am helping whilst I can."
I nod, understanding.
He walks the flowers to the counter, placing them down in the paper and he starts to wrap them.
"I am sorry, like she invited you guys to her party. She's trying to meet new people." He says quietly. "Plus she is thankful to your mother for helping me."
I nod, understanding.
"No it's cool, I wanna come to a dinner party, that sounds fun."
"It's not fun. I promise you. You won't be missing anything if you let your parents come alone."
I look at him, my eyes searching his which are looking down at the flowers.
"Roe? You're allowed to ask me not to come if you don't want me to." I say.
He looks up. He winces. "No, I am just telling you that you don't have to. That it'll be your parents, the lady next door and her husband- oh your aunt I guess- you know. And then Sutton's parents and my mum's partner's friends. Like it's random and I she just-"
"Is your mum a good cook?" I whisper.
His left eyebrow lifts and he nods.
"Then please let us come, I love my dad's cooking but it's always rushed and easy and my mum can't cook to save her life, in fact she often puts our lives in danger. If you're offering good food then I will happily come, I don't mind it being weird. I will just be coming for the food."
"Okay." He chuckles, shaking his head a little in amusement at my dramatics over my mum's cooking.
"Also don't mention that my mum's cooking is bad."
"Why on earth would I?"
"Well, I don't know- it might just fall out."
"That's a Lottie foot in mouth moment, not something that I would do."
"Don't go pretending you know me Rowan." I say. "We're not even friends remember?"
"Oh yeah." He says softly and he rings me up and hands me the flowers. "Just ten will do."
I lift an eyebrow. This is at least thirty worth of flowers here. "Rowan..."
"For saving my life and all."
"Oh, now you're saying thank you? Before you told me to fuck off."
He shrugs. "I never said that and fine, maybe I am more thankful now."
I smile at that and hand him the money and he lifts the flowers to hand them to me.
"You..." He starts. "You wanna see in the back? It's pretty cool."
I stare up at him, weirdly wanting to say yes. I do wanna see what's back there. But I shake my head. "I am sorry, I left my friends a while ago now and I didn't actually tell them where I was going."
He nods in understanding.
"Okay, yeah I better get back to helping mum." He says.
"Thank you for the flowers." I say.
"You're welcome."
"Oh and- get your mum to ring my parents, or ok I'll get mum to ring your mum or something. Because I want to come now."
"Okay." He chuckles and I take the yellow flowers and step backwards, still maintaining eye contact.
I wonder if he's seeing Sutton tonight.
"Are you doing anything after work?" I ask. "Sutton gets off at nine, we could-"
"I'm staying at India's." He says and I nod quickly.
"Oh yeah, I forgot."
Rowan smiles slightly. I return it.
Well then. "I hope that goes ok, message if, I dunno, you need rescuing? I can't drive but I definitely will want to hear the gossip so I'll come with Sutton-"
"Okay." He chuckles. "Your friends are waiting."
"Solana's waiting." I whisper back, my eyes widening in amusement and he smiles.
"The girl you like?"
I shrug. "We're just- spending time together. But yeah she's really pretty."
"So go."
I nod. Laughing. "Yes, yes, ok. Good night."
"Night Lots."
I walk back out, holding my flowers in one hand and smiling a little to myself, enjoying getting more friends.
Especially as he said he didn't want to be my friend at first.
It's nice to know that I can slowly change someone's opinion of me.
I walk back into the gallery and Nova looks up.
"You were long, was the order ok?"
"Yeah, perfect. Was just-" I gesture to my flowers. "Can I go stick them in the upstairs sink until I go home?"
"Yeah of course." She tells me and so I go and do that, and then I return to my friends for the evening.
Hi:) Hey:) Hope this was okay:-)