Vivienne and I got an A+ on our project. 100%.
"I knew we would." Vivienne said to me, when she came up to me after class, "You can be my project partner anytime, Charlotte."
One thing I noticed was that I never saw Vivienne during lunch. I found myself looking for her in the cafeteria.
The next Wednesday after we hung out, I found my answer as to where she went during lunch.
I had to make copies of a paper for my English class- so at the beginning of my lunch, I went to the library.
I saw Vivienne sitting at one of the computers, reading a book.
When she saw me, she waved.
I decided to walk over to her.
"Hey, Charlotte." she said to me, putting a pink bookmark in her book and closing it.
"Is this where you spend lunch?" I asked her, "I haven't seen you in the cafeteria."
"It is." Vivienne nodded, "I like to read. I'd prefer to do that in a quiet place like the library than sit in a loud, stuffy cafeteria."
"I get that, actually." I said, "But you're more than welcome to sit with my friends and I anytime. If you want social interaction."
"I'm getting social interaction right now." Vivienne said, "I was going to ask you what you're doing this weekend. I see you get your nails done. I've been wanting to get mine done. I thought maybe we could together?"
Getting my nails done was something I do with my mom a lot. But I knew I could tell her I was going with a friend this time.
"Of course." I said, "I can make an appointment for us at the place I go to."
"Sounds like a plan." Vivienne said, and she gave me a smile.
Those dimples.
I told my mom when I got home from school that I would be getting my nails done with a friend.
"It's who I saw on Friday night, I was working with her on a school project." I said, "She's actually pretty nice. She wants to get her nails done, and I told her I would show her where we go."
I tried to sound as casual as possible.
My mom looked at me and chuckled, "You can go with your friends- I don't mind. You don't have to explain it to me."
"Okay. Thanks." I said to her.
"I think it's good that you're making another friend." she said to me, "Of course you have your core group. But there's nothing wrong with spending time with people outside of that."
"Agreed." I said.
I called the nail salon I go to, called Sunshine Nails. The only appointment I could get for the two of us was at 7:00- the last before they close.
I texted Vivienne about the time, asking if it was okay.
"Perfectly fine." she texted back.
On Friday night I hung out with Amanda, Valentina, and Olivia at Amanda's house. She has a heated jacuzzi in her sunroom- so we all changed into our swimsuits and went in it. Even in the dead of winter.
As the four of us sat in the jacuzzi together and laughed and talked about numerous topics, such as people at our school and college, Amanda said to me, "You've been talking to the new girl sometimes, right?"
I saw Olivia glance at me.
"We worked on a project together, yes."
"She has a great sense of fashion." Amanda said, "Reminds me of yours, Char."
"She's really pretty, too." Valentina said.
You're telling me.
Suddenly, I couldn't help but to picture Vivienne, in the jacuzzi with us, in a bikini.
Maybe my friends would suggest that they would grab food. And then they could leave Vivienne and I alone. I would slide up next to her, and then maybe we could-
Stop. Stop it, Charlotte.
Knowing Vivienne wasn't straight was making my mind run even more wild.
I had to stop it though. Especially for us getting our nails done.
Sunshine Nails was over 20 minutes from my dads house, but I didn't care about driving there.
"I did not realize that the shopping center where this place is, is right near my house." Vivienne said to me as we walked into the salon.
She had on a pair of black jeans, a green cargo jacket, and a cream colored shirt under it. Her hair was in a small braid- and it looked lovely.
"Do you live in Rose Hills?" I asked her, referring to the hosting development right nearby that had quite large homes.
"I do." Vivienne said, "The house is a lot of space for just my parents and I, but it's nice."
"You don't have any siblings?" I asked her.
"Only child." she said back.
When we walked into Sunshine Nails, Kai, the woman who usually does mine and my mothers nails said, "Welcome!"
"Hello, Kai." I said, "I brought a friend today."
"I see." Kai nodded. She then said to Vivienne, "What is your name?"
"Vivienne."
"You're very beautiful, Vivienne. Like your friend." Kai said, smiling at me.
"Thank you, Kai." Vivienne said.
"Okay. Pick your colors." Kai said.
Vivienne and I walked up to the wall of polishes.
"I always get gel." Vivienne said.
"Same here. Do you get acrylics?"
"Never. I only have my natural nails." Vivienne said, "What about you?"
"I get tips." I said.
Vivienne looked down at my nails, "You still keep them at a very reasonable length though."
"I can't stand claws." I said.
Vivienne laughed, "They sure do look like claws, don't they?"
Vivienne chose a light gray color for her nails, and I chose baby blue.
We sat at tables across from each other, and I noticed that as Vivienne was getting her nails done, she was inspecting each thing the nail tech, Lilo, was doing.
She's a bit of a perfectionist, isn't she?
"Have you known Vivienne for long?" Kai asked me.
"Only a few weeks. She's new to school."
"She seems to be comfortable with you." Kai said to me.
I hope so.
The appointment always ends with a hand massage. I glanced over at Vivienne, who had her eyes closed, enjoying the massage.
"What lotion are you using?" I heard her ask Lilo, "It's so relaxing, I could use it before bed."
"It has jasmine and bergamot." Lilo said back, "I can give you a sample."
Once again, after we got our nails done, I was worried Vivienne would want to just go home.
But she didn't.
"Are you hungry?" she asked me, "I'm hungry."
"I could eat." I said to her, "What are you in the mood for?"
"Do you like sushi?" Vivienne asked me.
"Of course I like sushi." I said, "Is that even a question?"
"Hey. Some people don't like raw fish. Unless you're one of those people that only eat California rolls?" Vivienne looked at me.
"I like sashimi." I said, not being able to help but laugh.
Vivienne chuckled too, "Alright. Show me where we can find good sushi."
"Do you want me to drive us, or...?"
"I can meet you there." Vivienne said, "I'll follow you. I don't want to impose you to drive me around."
"It's not imposing." I said to Vivienne, "Get in my car."
"Aye, ye, captain." Vivienne said, giving me a salute.
I got into the drivers side, and as Vivienne opened the door and sat in the passengers side, I started thinking about the situation I was in.
And I couldn't shake my nerves for a second.
The girl that I am feeling something for is currently in my car. Right next to me.
I could so easily just put my hand on her thigh. I could so easily lean over and kis-
Stop it. Stop.
"Hey. Are you okay? You look a bit...spaced out." I heard Vivienne say.
"Oh! Yes, I'm fine." I said, "Off to Oishi we go."
"Oh, I've tried this place. I got doordash from there the other night when I was craving some sushi."
"Are you okay with it? There are other places."
"More than okay with it. It was delicious." Vivienne reassured me.
I parked at the restaurant- and as I guessed, it was packed. One of the best Japanese/Korean BBQ restaurants in town? Of course it was packed.
Though somehow- Vivienne and I got a table. We were brought to the back by the host, and our table was one of those where one side is a chair, the other is part of a long booth against the wall.
"You can take the booth if you want to." I said to Vivienne.
"Are you sure? The booth is always more comfortable." Vivienne said to me.
"Why I want you to sit there." I said.
Vivienne raised her eyebrows for a split second, but she then sat at the booth across from me.
Once again, this was feeling like a date almost. The lights in the restaurant were dim. Vivienne was sitting across from me, studying the menu.
It was a loud restaurant- between the sounds of diners talking, silverware clattering, and the KR&B music playing in the background.
It was like I had tunnel vision though. All of that faded into the background as I looked at the girl sitting across from me.
"Do you want to order your own rolls, or should we share?" Vivienne asked me.
"How would you like to share?" I asked her, "I trust your opinion when it comes to sushi."
"How about you pick two rolls, and I pick two?" Vivienne asked me.
"I like the sound of that. I'm also going to get an order of vegetable gyoza. You can't go wrong with that." I said.
Vivienne gave me a smile, "You're a smart girl, Charlotte."
I felt myself smiling back at her.
Vivienne and I each ordered two special rolls, and then some sashimi, along with the vegetable gyoza.
I had a feeling she was going to be able to use chopsticks like pro- and I wasn't wrong.
My dad made my siblings and I learn how to use chopsticks when we were young. He thought it was a sing of respect for us to be able to use them at Asian restaurants.
When we got the gyoza, Vivienne put one of them in her mouth and then closed her eyes and chewed, nodding. I could tell she was enjoying it.
"Oh my." she said, "That's delicious."
"I'm glad you approve of my choice." I said.
"Approve? I'm in love." she said, and for a moment, I felt a chill go down my spine.
Chill. She's just talking about the gyoza, weirdo.
"Did you have gyoza this good in your town in New York?" I asked Vivienne.
"Honestly- no. This beats out the Japanese and Chinese restaurants where I lived. It's a bit more...affluent here than where I lived in New York. My neighborhood was really nice, but the town was a bit of a mixed bag. Vivienne said, "The school that I went to was about a half hour away, that area was a bit more like it is around here."
"And you don't miss your old school at all?" I asked her.
"Not one bit. My life already feels like a sucking void most of the time. High school makes that worse." Vivienne said casually.
"A sucking void?" I asked her.
"Oh, you know how life can be." she said, brushing off the comment, "High school is something I am completely over. Actually, I was over it the moment I set foot into my old high school."
"I agree with you, I am over it. I used to really be immersed in it the first couple of years, but now I'm not." I said.
"Ah, I knew you were a popular gal." Vivienne said to me, with a smile, "Let me guess, you were the it girl of the school?"
"I wouldn't go that far..."
"I'm sure I'm right though." Vivienne said confidently.
"And why wouldn't you have been the it girl at your school?" I asked Vivienne, "Have you seen yourself?"
Vivienne paused and gave me a smile that made my heart skip a beat before she continued talking, "I wasn't nice enough to be a so-called 'it-girl". People don't respond well to complete apathy when it comes to popularity. I also had zero school spirit. Still don't. I keep seeing posters hanging up for the Sweetheart Dance on Valentines Day. Cringe."
"Oh." I said, "I was actually going to be going out with my friends tomorrow to buy a dress for it. I don't have much school spirit anymore, but I find the dances to be fun."
"Hey, don't let my disdain for school dances prevent you from having a fun time." Vivienne said.
"You should go too." I said.
Vivienne laughed, "Me? At a school dance? No thank you."
"I think you would have fun if you stuck with me." I said to Vivienne, looking right at her.
"You are pretty fun to be around, I'll give you that. But I still think that might be a hard no." Vivienne said, with a smile.
Our sushi got served to us, and after the first bite Vivienne once again closed her eyes and nodded.
"Mmmm." she said, "My god, this is good."
"Maybe we could venture out of town and try new sushi sometime." I said- without even thinking about it.
What if she says no?
"Oh, so you want to spend even more time with me?" Vivienne said, with a smile.
"You're not half bad." I said back.
"Hey, I'll take it!" Vivienne laughed.
Besides how she looked, there was something so captivating about the way Vivienne spoke. She had just enough wittiness to keep you on your toes, wanting to know what she would say next.
I noticed though- no matter what, she always had a bit of a melancholic look to her. Even when she smiled, or laughed. I could see it in her eyes. There was a wistfulness about her that never quite went away.
Maybe I can help with it?
Jesus, Charlotte. Stop it.
When we finished eating our sushi, I drove us back to where her car was parked.
Once again, I was very hyper aware that she was next to me. In my car. My heart was pounding the whole time.
I walked Vivienne over to her car and she turned to me before she got in it.
"Once again, this was really nice." she said, "If you'd like to hangout again sometime, I'm down for that."
"I would really like that." I said to Vivienne.
"Why don't you come over?" Vivienne asked me, "Sometime this week or next weekend, even. If you'd want to, of course."
"That sounds fun." I said, "We can have a girls night."
"That sounds great." Vivienne gave me a smile, and once again she looked at me for a split second- and then she got in her car.
And when I got back to my bedroom- all I could think about was having her on my bed with me.