Omniscient POV:
"What is upp." Hunter made her entrance known, per usual, as she let herself into Lauren's bedroom. She's supposed to be spending the holiday with Lauren due to her parents' inability to fly back into town in time.
Lauren giggled, drawing her attention from the TV to Hunter. She's now on season 3 of 'HTGAWM.'
"Hey boo, what's up." Pointing the remote at the screen, she paused the show and shifted her body in her extra large bean bag chair. Hunter plopped her body flat onto Lauren's bed before positioning herself on her side, propping a hand under her head with a bent elbow.
"Oh nothing, I was bored so I decided to come bother you," she shrugged a shoulder. Lauren observed her friend for a moment. There was something else. Squinting her eyes skeptically, she questioned,
"Mmmhm, and what else?" Hunter smirked,
"You never told me about your infamous date with the infamous girlfriend," she playfully glared.
Lauren quickly averted back to the TV with an undeniable blush. Hunter shot up on the bed as she gasped, "Oh shit, now you have to tell me!"
Feeling an invisible spotlight on her, Lauren covered her face with both hands before dragging fingers down her cheeks. She repositioned her body around to face Hunter fully,
"Alright fine I'll tell you but Hunter I'm telling you now, you better not tell a soul." Her voice became firm as she pointed a lone finger. Hunter's hands humorously flew up in surrender as her lips curved into a grin,
"Hey, you got it dude. Now come on! Tell me, tell me!" She eagerly motioned for Lauren to begin the story. Rolling her eyes with a soft chuckle, Lauren began telling Hunter everything that happened between her and Sade. Well...everything in a nutshell. By the time she finished, Hunter's jaw was practically on the floor while her eyes grew larger by the second.
"Bitch. Holy fucking shit," she said in both disbelief and captivation. Lauren perked up as she continued to cheese in excitement,
"Oh anddd we said the L word," she glowed. Hunter gasped,
"Shut up! You didn't!"
"We did-" her head slowly bobbed a shameless nod. With a smile, Hunter proudly shook her head,
"Y'all two make me sick, I swear," she sighed. Standing from the bed, she walked over to Lauren who sat in the middle of the floor, in front of the TV.
"Scooch-" Hunter flapped her hands, motioning for Lauren to move over as she got comfortable next to her.
She arched a teasing eyebrow. "So what's up with you? Still rejecting every guy in your dm's?" Hunter lowered her head backward to rest on the bean bag chair before sighing,
"Oh honey, you know mama don't do relationships-"
"Oh come on Hunter, seriously? Not one person is at least a little bit interesting to you?" Lauren pinched air between her fingers, squinting both eyes. Tightening her lips straight, Hunter quickly shook her head,
"They all give me an ick. And even the ones that don't, we just don't clique."
Lauren palmed her forehead in laughter, "Oh lord." Hunter snickered along,
"I'm serious! But I don't know ian sweating it," she shrugged in content.
Lauren's hands flew up in surrender, "Hey, I'm behind ya 100%, you go girl." They both soon broke out laughing, leaning onto each other.
Hunter's POV:
Watching the show along with Lauren, I was curled into a ball and snuggled under the huge throw blanket we now shared.
I tilted my head up to glance at her,
"Hey when did your dad say he'd be back again?"
Her eyes never left the tv, "Uhhhh he should
be back by now honestly....why?" Lauren asked, glancing back at me. I shrugged,
"Just wondering, I didn't know if we'd be here alone for long or not-"
"Oh..wel-" her phone started ringing, cutting the sentence short. As she held it up, I saw Lauren was getting an incoming FaceTime call from Aria.
"This bitch-" Lauren grinned, shaking her head, "I bet she calling cause she bored and wanna come over. Watch," she said before answering.
"Boo bearrr!" Aria's voice sang through the speakers of the phone. A quiet chuckle stemmed from me because I could tell she's definitely about to ask to come over.
"Mhm." Lauren squinted her eyes, "you want sum, I already know."
"Wha- n- can't I just call my beloved friend to see how she's doing?" Aria faked a hurt expression as she placed a hand over her chest. Lauren shrugged,
"Yeah, you could. But you're not, so out with it." Aria cackled as a manly voice came through,
"I told you she'd see through your bullshit," she laughed. Sitting up once recognizing it, my face barged in the camera,
"Dylan is that you? The hell you doing over there?" I noisily questioned with an eyebrow arched in suspicion. Aria's eyes widened and Lauren hung her head with a snicker. Apparently they knew something I didn't. "Ah hell, what y'all not telling me?" My body drew back into the chair. Lauren picked her head back up to look at me,
"They-" she quickly turned back to Aria, "wait it's okay if I tell her right A?" Aria nodded with a sigh,
"Yeah go ahead-"
"They're dating," Lauren explained. My eyes grew large as my mouth hung open,
"For real?" I gasped, shifting my focus between Lauren and her phone. Blushing, Aria nodded,
"For real girl." My body slumped further down into the chair, not sure what to say. I then faked a soft smile, looking at the screen,
"That's adorable, I'm happy for y'all-"
"Thanks Hunter!"
"Hey I'm gonna go get something to drink real quick," I told Lauren, swinging my feet to the floor and standing. "I'll be right back."
She nodded, and with that I'd left Lauren's bedroom. My feet felt as if they were growing heavier with every step I took down the stairs.
Suddenly I couldn't quite get a grasp of any air, feeling my throat swell like someone was choking the life out of me. Gripping my chest with one hand and my nails screeching the wall with the other, I tried my hardest to regulate my breathing. It seemed like the harder I tried, the harder it got, and the closer I felt to passing out. Frantically looking around me, I couldn't seem to make out a single object due to my vision spinning. My behind aggressively found a step as I began to hyperventilate. Tears welled in my eyes and I genuinely thought I was dying until feeling firm hands gently rub my shoulders. With now blurred vision, my ears couldn't quite hear the voice that spoke calmly to me.
The figure that stood before me became apparent while I remembered how to breathe. Lauren's dad moved his mouth and nodded his head as if he was talking to me, but I still couldn't quite make out anything he said. The heaving in my chest slowed down as I frantically shook my head,
"I ca- I can't brea- I-"
"Hunter? Listen to me okay? Just breathe with me honey, can you do that?" His face remained calm, but I could tell he was a bit frightened. More tears brimmed my eyes because now I felt bad. He nodded his head and slowly inhaled while looking directly into my eyes. I tried my best to mirror him.
"That's it, come on you got it." Blinking my tears away, I replied with a nod. "Inhale-" I did so, "Good, now exhale." I followed suit. My breathing had become normal as well as my vision and hearing.
"I'm sorry, I don't know what just happened," I muttered, shaking my head. His face furrowed is concerned,
"There's no reason to apologize honey. Are you okay? Is everything alright?" I deniably shook my head, mustering the most assuring smile I could,
"Oh no I'm fine! Seriously, I just- I don't know sometimes I just get really anxious and little breakdowns like that come out of nowhere." I glanced at him and he just stared back at me like he didn't believe a word I said, but I didn't budge. He sighed,
"Hunter. Are you sure you're okay?" He lifted both eyebrows. Attempting a grin, I quickly nodded,
"I promise Mr. Johnson, I'm fine." My voice came out barely above a whisper. I shifted under his gaze, afraid that if he asked again, I'd crack.
Thankfully, the sound of Lauren's bedroom door swinging open came from upstairs. I sighed a breath of relief, brushing past him.
"Please don't tell Lauren. I promise I'm fine," I whispered before disappearing down the steps and into the kitchen.
Making sure I had myself completely gathered before Lauren made her way down here, I opened the fridge with a sigh.
"Girl what in the world is taking you so long. Had me up there waiting forever, I thought you just wanted something to drink?" She spoke from behind me.
"Oh my bad, my mom called and I was talking to her," I lied. Lauren paused for a minute before responding, and I for sure thought she'd seen right through it.
"Alright well Aria's bringing the peeps over and they're bringing food, I thought I'd let you know. We'll probably have like a game night or something too."
With a semi genuine smile, I swiveled around to face her,
"Oh cool, that actually sounds really fun. How far away are they?"
"About 10 minutes from here." I nodded and walked over to her.
Turning on her heels, she walked back up the stairs with me. Her eyes lingered on me, as if she wanted to say something, but she held her tongue. I spoke, before she could gain any courage to ask me a question I'd have to lie about,
"Think we'll all get along as a group? I've never really hang around Silas, Aria, or Sade," I asked as we entered her room. With a shrug, she took her spot back in the bean bag chair,
"Honestly I think we'll click pretty well. We're all pretty chill individuals, and I think our personalities would kind of feed off of each other."
I smirked while pulling my hair up in the mirror she had on the back of her door, "guess we'll see huh?" I said looking over my shoulder, down to where she sat. Lauren craned her neck up at me,
"Guess so..."
Sade's POV:
"Hey kids! Come down here!" My mom's voice carried from downstairs, drawing my attention from the sketchbook in my lap.
A lot has been on my mind lately and drawing designs really helps me get away from my own thoughts. Fashion has alway been a huge outlet for me. I've always been inspired by the way you can tell so much about a person just by how they dress themselves, yet it only scratches the surface. Sighing and setting my sketchbook to the side of my bed, I pulled my covers back. Slipping into some Nike slides and throwing on my sweatpants that sat on the chair, I dragged myself out of my bedroom.
Stumbling into the hallway, I saw my sisters exiting their rooms with attitudes similar to mine. Knowingly, we each eyed each other, falling in line, as we moseyed down the steps without another word. Lyric led in front, the twins in the middle, and I lingered behind.
We walked into the leaving room and looked around in confusion because none of us saw our mother.
"Ma where you at?" Lyric yelled.
"Dining room!" her voice carried through the first level of our house.
Our slides scuffed the wooden floor as we walked into the dining room. A look of shock and confusion washed across each of our faces once our mother came into view, cuddled up to some man. Damnit, 'Thena was right. I mentally rolled my eyes, figuring where this was heading.
Looking all giddy, my mother stood and motioned her hand to introduce us, "Wes these are my kids," she ushered to each of us as she stated our names, "my 13 year old twins, Athena and Amara, my 16 year old, Lyric, and my oldest, Sade" she smiled at me. I just stared at her like she'd lost her mine because at this point that had to be the case. "Kids, this is Wes, my boyfriend" she said as if she'd claimed some prize.
With a bright smile, he stood, tall as hell, all broody and nice looking. I hate him already.
"Hi girls, it's really nice to finally meet you all. Your mother never stops talking about you" her eyes googled at him. I'm gonna be sick. My sisters and I gave her looks asking 'are you kidding?'
Lyric shook her head in disbelief, "I'm sorry he's your what now?" she spoke to my mom, ignoring Wes' greeting. My mom frowned,
"Lyric don't be ru-"
"I apologize for her, we're just a bit shocked here. It's nice to meet you Wes." 'Thena said to him, plastering a welcoming smile. Everyone in the room instantly turned their attention to her, taken aback, especially me. Wasn't she just having a fit the other day about this??
"Mom hasn't really told us much about you so forgive our reactions, we don't mean to be rude" 'Mara backed her up.
My mom looked at me, surely waiting for me to follow. I remained silent. I had absolutely nothing to say to her, nor anyone. Honestly, being in this room, I felt the walls slowly coming in on me the longer I stayed. She sighed,
"Will you guys please have a seat for me?" she gestured to the chairs on the opposite side of the table from her and Wes. "We should all talk."
Everyone did as my mother instructed, except for me. Noticing my unwavering position, she gazed at me with pleading eyes,
"Sade honey please come sit"
"I'm okay right here mom, really" my voice deadpanned. Sighing in defeated, she nodded knowing there was no convincing me. Keeping me in her peripheral, her attention went to my sisters as she spoke,
"Alright I know you girls are confused, and I'm sorry for not saying anything about Wes sooner, but I just needed time to think first. We met a while ago and have been dating for months now. He makes me very happy and we love each other dearly. I want you all to get to know him for yourselves because I see myself being with him for a very long time. I didn't want to make you all meet if there was a doubt that he wasn't here to stay-"
"Here to stay? What are you trying to say?" Lyric cut in as she asked, unsure if she wanted the true answer. My mother sighed again,
"I'm saying......Wes asked me to marry him...." the tension in the air was thick enough to suffocate someone, "and I said yes." Deafening silence filled the room. Each of us burned holes into her while she gazed lovingly at Wes, and he smiled back at her. Yeah no, I can't do it.
Next thing I knew I'd practically teleported up the stairs. Grabbing my phone, keys, and purse, I then flew to my car without saying anything to anyone. I drove, fast, with no destination as a thunderstorm of thoughts roamed my head. Quiet. I just wanted some peace....and quiet. Finding myself in the empty parking lot of an abandoned store, I parked abruptly. My hands shook against the steering wheel while holding a tight grip onto it. My eyes gazed straight ahead, blinking slowly. Out of nowhere I'd exerted an emotionless chuckle which then led to a hysterical laugh. Not a damn thing was funny, yet somehow that's why I was laughing. I had to. I needed to. Because no fucking way this shit was happening right now.
The more my mind raced with thoughts about the last 30 minutes, the harder it became to keep myself calm. I was begging to feel everything I'd been trying so hard to keep down, at once. Anger, sadness, hurt, confusion, alone, overwhelmed......it was all too much. Suddenly my laughter became a hysterical cry. For what? For who? I don't know, but at that moment everything boiled over the surface. I didn't want to talk. Hell, I didn't even want to be crying right now, but I did want to scream. That was at the top of the list right now. Yet I couldn't. It felt like someone had just lifted a large boot from my neck and now my voice was impaired. The first instinct to cross my mind was to call my girlfriend, but I couldn't. My body wouldn't move. Instead, it sat still in this car for an hour as I bawled my eyes out, alone.
~ 5 Hours Later ~
After a very intense mental breakdown, a bitch was tired. Hearing my phone ring, I groaned at my sleep being interrupted. Reaching from my reclined driver's seat over to the passenger seat, I picked it up. My sister's picture was on the screen, causing me to sigh,
"Hello" I answered with a groggy voice.
"Sade, where the hell did you go?!" Lyric whisper yelled, sounding like she was worried.
"I needed to get out of that house Lyric"
"Where'd you go? Are you okay? Are you alone?"
"I'm fine and I'm in the car at the store. Don't wait up for me though I probably won't be coming back home tonight." She sighed knowingly,
"Alright I'll let everyone know. Be careful please."
"I will, love you bye."
"Bye, love you"
Just when I was about to throw my phone, turn over, and go back to sleep, the bitch rang again. My eyes rolled paired with another groan,
"Whatttt" I whined to myself. Picking it up and glaring at it, Aria's face now displayed on the screen.
Thankfully, she called me the regular way and not facetime. There was no way I could pretend to be okay that fast. Assembling my best 'I'm fine' voice, a finger slid across the device to answer,
"Hey boob!" fake excitement laced my words.
"Hey babydoll, what you doing?" she said in high spirits causing a toothless grin to seep in.
"Oh nothing just getting gas" I lied, sitting up to scan the empty parking lot and check my surroundings. Settling back into my reclined seat, I held the phone flat in my hand as my elbow propped on the armrest.
"Okay well I'm heading to Lauren's with Kingston, Dylan and Silas-"
"Hey Sade!" Dylan called from the background. Aria and I laughed,
"Heyy Dylan!" I yelled back. My best friend continued,
"We're about to pick up the food and snacks. I thought you'd be over there already, but I'm glad I called anyway."
"Yeah I've been running around all day. I planned to come over later, spend the night, and leave in the morning because I knew we'd have to be with families tomorrow."
"Girl same, seems like we on the same wave. You'll meet us there yeah?" Forgetting she couldn't see me, I nodded,
"Be there in 30"
"Okay bye boob"
"Bye babe!" I said enthusiastically before hanging up.
Sighing, I wiped the lone tear that streamed down my face and pushing down the lump in my throat. Instinctively, my hands turned the ignition, cranking my car, and with that I drove off.
While pulling into the driveway of my house, I texted 'Thena, telling her to get my already packed duffle bag from my room and discreetly bring it outside to me. Once retrieving the bag with my overnight stuff in it, I headed to my girlfriend's house.
~~~~~~~~