“Psst!”
“Psssssst!”
“PSSSS-” “-What?!”
Brody glared at Clementine.”Don’t get sassy, you’re the one that didn’t answer me!” She whisper yelled, causing Clementine to look back at her once more. “I didn’t answer you because Im trying to actually learn something.” She huffed, turning back to the board and continuing to write down the slide of notes. With a poke on her back, Clem turned around again. “What, Brody?!” She whisper yelled, catching the teachers attention. “Clementine!” The teacher called, causing the brunette to snap her head back with a small sigh. “Yes, Mr.White…?” She asked slowly. The dark skinned man raised an eyebrow, pointing at her. “Unless you’re talking about class topics, which I have a feeling you aren’t, please save the conversation for before or after class, alright?” “Yes, Mr.White.” She repeated, glaring at Brody behind her, lucky that she hadn’t gotten in any serious trouble. That was why Mr.White was one of her favorite teachers; despite the scar on his cheek and scary looking ear, he was a pretty down to earth guy. He even sometimes let them refer to him as his first name,”Mike”, but it just didn’t feel right to Clem.
After class, Brody quickly packed up her things and stood at Clementine’s desk, waiting for her to finishing putting away her own books. “Clem!” She started, once more grabbing the envelope and poking the other girl with it. The burnette raised an eyebrow, looking up at her. “Yes, Brody?” She grumbled, swinging her backpack around as the two made their way to the cafeteria. Glancing down to the envelope, she took it, opening it at Brody’s gesture. Her lips curved into a small smile, a snicker forming. “A birthday invitation? Really? Why didn’t you just text me?” Brody shook her head. “Texting isn’t fun. Paper invitations are way cooler.” She assured. Clem scanned her eyes over the paper, her eyebrow raising. “Tonight? Why tonight? You know Lee has the car on Fridays-” “-Exactly.” Brody interrupted her. “I figure you can be dropped off early, and you won’t be driving yourself so we won’t have to worry about you crashing another car. Again.” She chuckled, causing Clem to roll her eyes. “That’s only happened three times-” “-and you got your license last year. That’s more than some people ever crash in a lifetime.” She chuckled, causing the other girl to roll her eyes and shake her head.
As they began to approach their designated group table at lunch, Brody stopped her. “One more thing,” she started, looking Clementine in the eyes as she spoke. “Do you think you can convince Violet to come…?” She asked her, causing a red tint to spread across the other girls cheeks. “What makes you think-” “-C’mon, Clem. We both know she goes anywhere you go.” Brody sighed, her eyebrows furrowing. “What makes you think she wasn’t going to come in the first place…? Did you give her an invitation…?” Clem asked, watching as Brody’s face fell. “I did, but she walked off and threw it away right after. I think she’s still mad at me...Please Clem? It won’t be the same without her.” Brody pleaded, causing her to sigh. “Alright, I’ll ask her…” She grumbled, watching as Brody’s face lit up. “Thank you!” She said eagerly, engulfing the smaller brunette into a hug. Clementine smiled, patting her on the back. “Don’t mention it.”
As the group sat at the table, Clementine glanced over to Violet as she stared off. “Vi,” Clem whispered catching the blonde’s attention. “Whats up?” She asked. Clem glanced around to make sure the rest of the group wasn’t paying attention, before answering: “Are you coming to Brody’s birthday party?” Violet rolled her eyes, scoffing. “C’mon, Vi! It’ll be fun, and she really wants you to come…” Clem trailed off, watching as the blonde glanced up at her out of the corner of her eye. “Did she tell you that…?” She muttered, huffing and turning her head. “She did. C’mon, Vi. I’d feel a little awkward if you didn’t come” She teased, though somewhat telling the truth. Violet’s head quickly snapped to meet Clementine’s eyes, a look of somewhat hope in her own. “You’re going…?” She asked, watching as the brunette nodded. Violet stubbornly turned her head again, sighing and rolling her eyes. “I- Fine. Whatever.” “Yes!” Clem cheered, hugging the blonde, causing a red tint to spread across her cheeks.
“What’s got you so giddy?” Louis questioned, smirking slightly. Violet soon glared at him, not only for ruining their ‘moment’, but also because his reaction caused Clem to remove her arms from the hug. “The fact that lunch ends in two minutes, and I won’t have to listen to your shitty jokes anymore.” She bit, watching as he placed his hand over his heart,”Ouch.”
-
Violet stared up at the large house, a look of doubt spreading across her features. “You aren’t backing out, are ya’?” Violet blushed and turned around, staring at the ground with crossed arms. “No-” “-I’m just teasing you, Vi.” Clem chuckled, a duffle bag with her clothes in it, along with the basic toothbrush, deodorant, etc in her hands. “Are you excited~?” She asked her, stopping as they reached the front door. “Not really…” The blonde sighed, earning a knowing glance from the subject of her affection. “Please, at least try to be nice? For me…?” The brunette asked sweetly, causing Vi to blush at her irresistible puppy-dog eyes. “Fine…” She sighed, glancing down at the concrete driveway once more.
The door opened, an eager Brody revealing herself in front of them. “Finally! You two are the last here, y’know.” She started off, moving to the side to give them room to come in. “What took you so long?” She questioned, causing the brunette to shrug. Brody smirked as she reached the last step, hopping off and walking towards where Louis and the others were currently screaming at some video game. “Were you two, perhaps, late because you were together?” She asked, implying something much more than just ‘being together’. The mere question was enough to turn Violet nearly completely red, though seemed to have no effect on Clementine. She pursed her lips in thought, before shrugging again. “Kinda, yeah.” She stated nonchalantly, obviously not getting what it was that Brody had meant. Brody’s mouth dropped open slightly, some of the others’ attention turning towards them. “Wait, really..? You two are…?” She trailed off, causing Clem to raise an eyebrow. “We’re what?” She questioned, causing Brody to sigh. “Oblivious, apparently.” She chuckled, before clapping her hands together.
“You two can put your stuff over there, as for the rest of you gremlins, are you ready to go yet or not?” Brody chuckled, watching as Louis placed his hand over his heart; that seemed to be something he had a habit of doing. “I will have you know, I am a mogwai.” He scoffed, causing the rest of them to roll their eyes. “Yeah right.” A sigh filled the room as the group eagerly stood up from their positions around the couch, following Brody up the stairs. As they left the house, Brody made sure to lock the front door before joining them; noticing Ruby was already in the passenger seat of her blue pickup. “What? I’m not about to argue…” Aasim sighed, before stepping onto the tire and climbing into the bed of the truck. One by one, the group sat in the back of Brody’s truck, Ruby, Tenn, Willy and Brody squeezing into the front. Due to the lack of much room, Clem found herself right next to Violet, their arms touching without anywhere to move them.
“Y’all ready?” Brody questioned them, glancing at them from her mirror. Louis was the only one to reply, his high pitched scratchy voice disrupting the rather quiet air around them,”Ready!” Unfortunately for everyone in the bed of the truck, Louis insisted on yelling,”You’re good! You’re good! You’re good!” repeatedly as Brody backed out of the driveway. Violet grumpily faced Clementine, her eyes taking their time to study the smile on her face, as well as the position of her arms; one was around her shoulder like it normally would be in the cheesy, cliche, highschool romance movies, and the other was holding onto the side of the truck. After a moment of two, Clem raised an eyebrow, shifting her gaze to the blonde. “What? Do I have something on my face…?” She asked, moving her arm from the truck to wipe her mouth off. “I knew I shouldn’t have eaten that donut before coming…” She grumbled, causing Violet to smile.
“There’s nothing on your face, I just..Uh…” Louis was watching the interaction from the opposite corner of the truck, a small smile washing over his features as he watched a gay-panic spread across the blondes face. “I..Where are-are we even going?” Violet grumbled, stuttering on her words and crossing her arms. Clem made a small ‘oh’ noise of relief; maybe the donut wasn’t such a bad idea. “The park. Did you not even read the invitation?” She sighed, smiling down to the blonde. The blonde only grumbled, causing Clem to smile more; she loved it when Vi got all defensive and grumbly and thought it was absolutely adorable. The sudden sound of music coming from the radio caused Clem to glance over her shoulder, only bringing her face closer to Violet’s. “Oh my god, really Brody?” Mitch scoffed with a small chuckle, causing Brody to give him a death glare. “I’ll have you know I only like the old school Taylor Swift.” She grumbled, smiling as she held up the CD. “If it bothers you that much,, I’ll just play the radio…” She sighed.
Her hand reached for the radio, pressing a number of buttons as she switched stations. Most of the songs were either something none of the group knew, or nothing they liked. As a certain song played, Louis smiled. “This one!” He shouted, hearing no complaints from the rest of the group. A few lines passed, Louis purposely singing it with much drama, causing the rest of the group to roll their eyes and join in. “Hands...Touching hands…” They started, only getting more and more excited for the chorus. Clem noticed Vi still wasn’t having it, so she put her arm down and stretched it out towards her. “Reaching out…” She sang jokingly, her eyes squinted dramatically. The arm had definitely caught Violet’s attention, a small smile spreading across her features. “Touching me,-” She sang, Violet merely chuckling, somewhat enjoying the sound of everyone’s voices together, singing such a random song. It wasn’t until Clem dramatically grabbed onto her jacket as they sang the additional,”Touching youu-!” that she realized maybe it wasn’t going to be as bad of a night as she thought.
“Sweet! Ca-roline!” The group sang, before letting out a loud,”BA, BA, BA~”. Even Violet had tapped her foot to the beat, finding the song somewhat catchy, but overall enjoying how into it they all seemed to be. It wasn’t until the song had ended that the group snickered, Brody turning down the radio, though letting it continue to play. Brody glanced into her rear view mirror, glancing at the blonde’s face and smiling. The way Violet looked at Clementine warmed her heart; and she vowed to get them together by the end of the night. She would consider it their birthday gift to her. Glancing back up to the road, Brody’s eyes widened as she realized she was about to miss her turn, not bothering to break as she quickly turned the wheel, miraculously making it. “Sorry!” She yelped, hearing the groans from the back. However, it wasn’t until after the truck had made it’s swift turn that Violet realized her change in position. Still feeling somewhat disoriented from being swing at such a speed, it took her a second to realize exactly what that position was; it seemed that with the force of the turn, as well as the cramped quarters in the truck bed, Violet had somehow managed to end up Clementine’s lap.
The blush started from her neck, quickly crawling up to her cheeks and ears, her eyes bulging out of her head as she scampered back to her original seat. “Clem, I’m sorry I didn’t mean to It was just the force of the turn and the-” Clem chuckled, grabbing Violet’s hand and holding it still to not only keep her from flailing it around as she had been, but also to bring her attention to her own eyes. “Vi, calm down, it’s okay. You’re warm and plus, you smell nice.” She smiled, causing the blonde’s blush to darken. “Sit where you want, I don't mind.” Clem shrugged, nudging the blonde’s shoulder as she once more put her arm around her. Violet stared at her for a solid minute, not bothering to breath as she thought about it. Boy did she really want to take her up on the offer. She wanted a lot of things, and having Clem nuzzle into her back and wrap her arms around her as she bragged over the 2cm height difference was definitely one of them.
Unfortunately for her however, she wasn’t as bold when it came to relationships. This caused her to simply place her hands in between her thighs, staring into her lap and avoiding eye contact. Louis shook his head. If there was anyone that wanted them together more than they did themselves, it was definitely Louis. When talking about it with their group, he referred to himself as ‘the captain’, also mentioning that Brody was the ‘co-captain’ and the rest were their ‘trusty crew’. “Amour stupide…” He shook his head, the random french causing Aasim to look at him with a very confused look. Before he got the chance to answer him, Brody had pulled into a parking spot, smiling and breathing in the fresh air as she stepped out of the truck, letting Tenn and Willy crawl out as well. A smile spread across her face as she realized they would be the only people there; no doubt because of the chilly october air. The others filed out of the truck, Clementine waiting seeing as she was the furthest from the exit. As she moved to jump out, she noticed Violet hesitantly holding out her hand, offering a sturdy hold for her to use if need be.
The brunette smirked, happily grabbing her hand and raising an eyebrow with a cheeky smile,”Thank you, madam.” She chuckled, causing the blonde to roll her eyes. “Shush…” She huffed, the red tint returning as Clem clinged to her arm with the same cheeky smile. “You know you love my jokes~” She smiled, looking up somewhat from her bent over position as they walked. Violet couldn’t help but smile, a small shrug following her words,”You’re right…” The brunette continued to hug the blonde’s arm, smiling softly before smirking mischievously. “Hey Vi…?” She questioned, pursing her lips. “Yeah..?” Violet asked, stopping and giving her a sincere look. Clementine let the mischievous smile reclaim her features, before shouting a,”Race you to the swings!” as she darted off. It took Violet a second to register what she had said, only aiding in her lead, before she took off after her.
“That’s not fair!” She smiled, untucking her hands from her coat pockets in order to allow her to run faster. She quickly caught up with the brunette, reaching her arm out and grabbing the chain of the swing just before Clementine had. She raised her eyebrow, bending over slightly to catch her breath in order to ease the burning of the cold air in her lungs. “How’d-?” “-Just because I hate sports doesn’t mean I’m not athletic.” She shrugged, placing her hands on her hips. Mitch and Willy walked up behind them, interrupting their conversation. “We used to bug Violet about joining the track team.” Mitch added, moving his head in an upward motion as they took the other two swings. “Yeah! When Vi was forced to take gym Freshman year, she broke the record for the fastest anyone had ever completed the mile run.” Willy added excitedly, causing Mitch to chuckle. “She had the fuckin’ track coach asking her everyday for nearly the whole year to join the team.” Clem raised an eyebrow, turning to the blonde. “What’d you do to get him to leave you alone?” She asked, watching as a smug grin found its way onto her features. “I insulted his coaching and told him the reason he wasn’t ever going to win was because he was more focused on me than the actual team.” She admitted, causing Clementine to snicker.
The two sat down into the swings, beginning to slowly move their legs and give them some momentum. “Why do you hate sports so much?” Clementine asked her, glancing in her direction. Violet shrugged,”It’s a waste of time. Unless I plan on running in the Olympics, there’s no use.” She sighed, causing Clem to nod understandingly. “You guys are married!” The two both turned to glance at a smirking Marlon, Louis, Omar, and Ruby next to him. “What?!” Clem shouted, having not heard what it was that he shouted. The group chuckled, before Louis cupped his hands around his mouth. “You’re swinging in unison! You’re married! Did you NOT learn the rules of the playground?” He chuckled, causing Violet to shake her head. ‘mArRiEd’ She mocked in a low voice, making a face that caused Clementine to chuckle. Vi smiled at the chuckle, turning and looking lovingly at the brunette, before quickly turning to her left at the sudden,”Shit!”
She noticed Mitch on the ground, holding onto his ankle, as well as Marlon and the others doing a small jog over to him. Both her and Clementine decided to drag their feet on the dirt, hopping off as soon as they could without injury. “You idiot! I told you not to jump!” Willy laughed, causing Mitch to smirk. “But it was awesome!” “You fools outta’ be more careful.” Ruby glared, crossing her arms and shaking her head. “You’re lucky it’s not sprained!” She yelled, before walking off in the other direction. Mitch shakily stood up, laughing though somewhat limping. “Hey guys! Look!” Aasim shouted from the lower portion of the playground, the others beginning to walk towards him. He gestured to the giant slide, as well as the rockwall to get up to it.
“First to…” He trailed off, turning around. “Hop from the lily pads, climb across the monkey bars, work your way up the pasta thing, slide down the slide, and climb the concrete train wins?” He questioned, narrowing his eyes as Violet snickered. “What’s so funny?” He asked her, crossing his arms. “Pasta thing…” She quoted, snickering and causing Clem to bite her cheeks to prevent a smile. Aasim narrowed his eyes. “Fine, make fun of my words. You’re disqualified.” He huffed in a childish tone, causing Violet to raise her eyebrows. “What? C’mon, that’s not fair. You’re just saying that because you know I’d kick your ass.” She grumbled, sighing before walking over to the train and climbing it, waiting until she was at the top to flip him the bird. “Reeal mature!” He yelled, glaring at her before turning to the rest of the group.
Violet sighed, crossing her legs and calmly resting her hands in her lap. For the first time in her life, she straightened her posture; hell, maybe that was the first time anything about her was straight. She watched as the others took off, Marlon taking the lead as he skipped over some of the lily pads, catching onto the monkey bars and swinging himself across. However, the position quickly changed as Willy took the lead, tripping Marlon and slipping by him, making his way to the quote,”pasta thing”, and worming his way up. His lead lasted a few seconds, before Clementine grabbed onto the outside of the contraption, hoisting herself up and sliding through once she reached the top. She quickly slid into the slide, not even getting all the way down before she hopped off, running and jumping to grab the ledge of the train. Surprisingly, her height had no effect, as she was one hell of a jumper. Violet watched with a smile as the others gave up, deciding that she had already beat them up there.
“Mind if I join you?” Clementine asked, peeking her head above the second ledge with an obviously large smile. Violet bit back on a smile herself, scooting over. “Not at all~” She beamed, the brunette standing and walking over to the bars of the top of the train. “I am, the best, relay runner, of all time!” She declared dramatically, causing Violet to snicker. Clem turned around, taking her seat next to Violet, not noticing the kissy faces and laughs from the group below. The two simply sat with each other and smiled, before Clem’s eyes widened. “Hey Vi?” “Yeah?” “How are we gonna get down…?” Violet’s eyes widened as well, only now realizing that their legs would be too short to reach the ledge below, leaving several feet between them and the ground. “Uhhh…” She trailed off, the gears in her brain turning as she thought. “I don’t know…Maybe just...hop off and wish for the best?” She sighed, asking more than stating. Clem smirked. “In that case, I’ll gladly hop off first; that way if you fall, I can catch you!” She chuckled, causing Violet to shake her head with a blush.
Sticking to her word, Clem hung from the top ledge, her feet dangling before she dropped, her knees bending and giving her a somewhat cushioned landing. “Okay, you’re next!” She called up. Violet anxiously glanced over the edge. From the top, it seemed like a very long way down. She grudgingly put her feet down, relying on her arms to keep her in place until she was comfortable with dropping down. Within seconds, Violet felt fear spread through her body, a spider from a top the train crawling right in front of her. She yelped, jerking backwards in order to avoid being attacked by the devilish creature, only to lose her balance. It had happened so fast, the next thing she knew, Clem was giving her a raised eyebrow and a smirk, her warm arms around the blonde’s figure. “Y’know, I was only kidding about catching you if you fell-” “-Shut up…” Violet dismissed, quickly standing up and looking in the other direction, crossing her arms.
“What made you fall, huh?” She asked, coming up behind her. “Was it my dashing looks? Perhaps you simply wanted me to catch you?” Clem teased, only causing the blush on Violet’s face to darken. “I- I slipped. My hands are sweaty.” She grumbled, soon interrupted by a familiar annoying voice. “Aw, Vi! You fell for Clem!” Louis cooed, causing Brody to snicker. “I’m gonna stab all of you.” She grumbled, watching as Brody smiled,”Even me? On my birthday?” She questioned, causing the blonde to narrow her eyes. “Even you. I’m gonna wait until you’re all asleep, take a...a plastic fork, and stab you all with it.” She huffed, glaring at them. “Oh no..Did you say...A plastic fork…?” Marlon muttered in fake horror. “Brody, I’m not sure how safe I feel sleeping over tonight.” He shook his head, placing a hand on his heart, a habit he seemed to have picked up from Louis.
Violet simply glared at them, shaking her head. “Whatever.” She sighed, watching as Aasim smiled. “Y’know, threatening other competitors is against game rules. I’m afraid Im going to have to disqualify you from future rounds as well.” He sighed, watching as her eyes widened. “What?” She mumbled, her face falling. She had to admit; she was somewhat hurt by it. Yes, she knew it was only them joking around, but it made her feel lonely, knowing the rest of them would be messing around together without her. “You’re disqualified. Go sit on a bench. I’ve benched you. Get benched.” He chuckled, not noticing the slight change in her demeanor. “Alright, hide and seek. Hmm...Louis! You came last so youre the seeker-” Clem slowly tuned Aasim out, her eyebrows furrowed, a concerned look spreading across her face. She watched as the blonde began to walk towards the bench, her hands in her pockets, before beginning to walk after her. “Vi-” “Clementine! Hurry and hide!” Willy called out, grabbing her hand and dragging her to a certain place in the park to hide.
Violet, instead of going to the bench, decided to sit inside the spinning disc. From there, she had a perfect view of the rest of the playground, seeing as it was the second highest point in the park from its position on the hill (next to the train). She watched as one by one, Mitch, then Omar, and Marlon were all found. She kept her eyes focused on the spot Clem has chosen to hide in: a tree. It was towards the far right of the playground, but still inside the fence nonetheless. She watched as Louis found Brody, then Willy, before a loud clang caught her attention. She raised an eyebrow at Mitch who had jumped into the disc with her along with Willy, only to quickly jerk her hands back, grabbing onto the bars of the disc as Marlon began to spin in. Her eyes widened, a sudden panic filling her chest. She absolutely hated this particular item in the park, and they all knew it. She shut her eyes hard, gripping onto the bars until her knuckles turned white. The sudden crunch of footsteps rang through her ears, hearing a mumble from Brody. “C’mon, Marlon. She’s gonna fall over when she stands up, you know how bad this disorients her…” The brunette trailed off, though maintaining her smile.
It wasn’t until five minutes later, when Louis had finally found Clementine and the two had began to walk up, that Marlon finally halted the agressively spinning disk. Clem walked over, holding her hand out just as Violet had done for her when helping her out of the truck. Violet leaned against the bars, allowing Clem to physically pull her out of the death trap, and setting her steady on the mulch. As soon as Violet took one step forwards, she found herself lying on the ground, the world spinning. “Oh lord…” Louis sighed, the rest of the group cracking up in chuckles as the blonde once more attempted to stand, only to get two steps in and fall over again. At this point, Violet’s arms felt numb, her head racing and vision blurry as the world continued to spin, only the sound of laughter echoing around her. “I hate...You all…” She sighed, the feeling of her lungs closing up causing her words to be very breathless. Clementine quickly walked over to the blonde, hovering over her face before grabbing her arm and putting it around her shoulder, hoisting her up.
“C’mon” She sighed, the smallest of smiles on her face. She didn’t understand why the other’s would laugh at Vi and her obvious disliking of how dizzy it made her, but before she had time to think about it, Violet was about to fall over again. “Nope, nope nope, I got ya…” She trailed off, picking the blonde up and holding her to her chest. The blonde leaned against Clementine, practically laying on her, her head bobbing back and forth as the world continued to spin. “Ugh… Fwbw..” She muttered, her eyes drooping as the urge to vomit increased. The rest of the group was still laughing as Clem stood with a smile, holding the blonde in her arms. “Alright, I think I’m gonna go sit with her for the rest of the night, you guys go do whatever.” She sighed, carrying the blonde over to the bed of the truck, letting the others continue their games. She lifted her body into the bed, climbing up and dragging her back into their previous seats. Violet was trying, she really was, but she had been spinning for so long she was starting to feel sick. She was unable to help it as she leaned on Clem’s shoulder, her head still bobbing. With a small groan, she closed her eyes and let her head fall into Clementine’s lap, feeling the brunette’s hand come down to her shoulder.
“I got you, you’re gonna be alright…” She soothed, moving her other hand down to move the strands of hair out of Violet’s face. The blonde grumbled, her words sounding more like,”ei oa fil hem…” and less like a sentence. Clem raised an eyebrow, letting a the smile on her face grow. “Yup… Whatever you say…” She mumbled, leaning her head against the side of the truck and looking lovingly at the blonde. As the group approached the pickup, Marlon nudges Brody. “See? I know what I’m doing…” He trailed off, smirking and bringing their attention to the two. Louis widened his eyes, smirking and high fiving his best friend. “I now pronounce you co-co-captain.” “Is that like assistant to the regional manager?” Marlon questioned, chuckling as Louis simply shrugged. Clem glanced up as the others started to file into the bed of the truck, Violet still too dizzy to even consider leaning up. “What, you aren’t gonna play hide and seek for another hour?” She questioned, disappointed that her time alone with the blonde was now over.
“We would have, if not for the fact that Brody ordered pizza for nine and it’s currently seven. I don’t know about you, but I want to swim in the pool before I eat.” Omar shrugged, closing the truck bed door as they finished getting in their seats. Clem tensed up as he spoke, chills running down her spine at the word ‘swimming’. “Swimming..? It’s fifty degrees…?” She questioned, causing Mitch to smirk. “Brody has an indoor pool. Perks of- wait, what does Brody’s dad do again? Didn’t he invent the toaster strudel or something?” Louis glared at him. “No, you’re thinking of Gretchen Weiners you uncultured swine.” He scoffed, causing Mitch to shake his head,”Yeah, okay, what he said.” Clem never found out what it was Brody’s dad did for a living, all she knew is that they weren’t hurting for money; but her parents weren’t always around either. “Speaking of which… I didn’t see her parents at the house…” Clem trailed off, whispering so as not to alert the girl on the other side of the glass. Marlon and Aasim glanced at each other. “They aren’t really around much. It’s why Vi coming meant a lot to her. She and Vi used to be close, and Vi was always around her parents.” Aasim informed.
“What happened?” She questioned, glancing down to the disoriented blonde in her lap. “They just...Stopped talking. It was like Brody had lost Vi and her parents at once. It took a toll on her, and Vi felt guilty so I guess they never got around to working it out…” Marlon explained, sighing. Clementine could only look at Violet with a sad expression, her fingers still fiddling with her sun bleached locks. Her head turned as Brody started the car. “Brody, take it easy on the turns, alright?” She joked, offering a friendly smile through the glass, receiving a thumbs up from the girl as she turned on the radio. Clem faintly recognized the voice of John Denver, hearing the rest of them quietly hum the lyrics to whatever song it was. She kept her focus on Vi, however, the butterflies in her stomach finally starting to get to her. Her eyes traced over the blonde’s lips, to her nose, to her soft eyes. She suddenly felt Violet sigh, her arms wrapping around her waist, causing her to slightly tense. Clem soon relaxed, going back to playing with her hair, finding the warmth comforting.
Not that Vi would admit it, but she had started to feel less dizzy around when they had finished talking about what had happened between her and Brody. The simple fact that her head was in Clementine’s lap caused her brain to melt, let alone the fact that not only was she playing with her hair, but she was overwhelmed with Clementine’s scent. It had always been one she enjoyed; not in a creepy way, but more of the fact that it calmed her, and gave her butterflies in her stomach. Her eyes were half lidded at this point, the cool air, soft music, and warmth of the brunette behind her nearly lulling her to sleep. Infact, had they not jolted to a halt, she probably would’ve. She slowly sat up, yawning as Clem gently cupped her cheeks. “You feeling better?” She asked softly, looking into her eyes. Violet felt a small blush rush to her cheeks, simply nodding in response. “Yeah…” She croaked, causing Clem’s mind to race; her voice sounded absolutely amazing when it was raspy and tired.
Sliding out of the truck, Clem offered Vi her hand once more, helping the girl out of the truck before closing the bed door. Not that either of them cared to mention, but they seemed to forget the part where after helping someone down, you generally let go of their hand afterwards; instead, the two held hands mindlessly, following the group into the house and keeping their hands together until they had to open a set of doors. As they made their way down the stairs, the sound of the flatscreen echoed up the stairway, some sort of musical playing. Clementine raised her eyebrow with a small smile as she turned the corner and realized the group had turned on Disney, the first Teen Beach Movie currently playing. “Really…? Teen Beach Movie?” She asked, causing Violet to snicker quietly beside her. Tenn smiled softly, leaning to Louis and whispering something in his ear as a song started up, causing Louis to choke on a laugh. Violet cocked an eyebrow,”What’s so funny?” She asked. Tenn pursed his lips, looking away from the two. “Tenn says that you’re McKenzie, and Clem is Brady.” Louis informed, fighting a smile of his own.
“Who…?” Violet asked, thoroughly confused as the group laughed amongst themselves. “Brady is the blonde guy, and McKenzie is the brunette.” Clementine informed her, having watched the movie several times with AJ when it came out. Violet furrowed her eyebrows, somewhat angry at how confused she was. “What makes you say that…?” Louis sighed,”Probably because McKenzie is uptight and doesn’t know how to have fun, and Brady is calm and tries to get her to ease up…” He trailed off. Violet glared at him, crossing her arms. “He’s not wrong, this part especially” Brody noted, turning her gaze back to the screen. Most likely one of the catchiest songs of the movie was on, causing Clem to smile. “This is my favorite part.” Louis whipped his head around, grinning. “Sing it.” Clem widened her eyes at the demand,”Huh?” Louis grinned mischievously, causing Brody to give him a knowing look. “Sing it, with Violet. You said this is your favorite part!” He teased. Brody turned to them with a pleading look in her eyes,”Please?!? Do it for my birthday.” She encouraged them, causing Clementine to sigh in defeat.
She glanced at Violet, a small smile finding its way onto her face. “...make it stop, make it stop, am I real or just a prop? Oh, I can’t stop singing, so let’s just talk,” The brunette paused, seeing that once more, the blonde was NOT having it. If she didn’t join her, this would be very awkward. “Talk...talk, talk, talk talk talk,” she sang softly, repeating the words several times in line with the song. Violet gave her an unsure look; she didn’t sing, ever. But she didn’t want to just leave her hanging; thankfully for her, the next line was simply spoken in tune and not sung, to which she only knew from the times Tenn had played it. Giving in, she rolled her eyes before mumbling a, “We’re trapped inside a musical, boo hoo…” Clementine smiled, her confidence spiking. She had finally gotten the blonde to somewhat sing something. Following the moves of what Brady did in the movie, the brunette grabbed the blonde’s hand, pulling her closer as she put her hand on her waist: “-at least i’m here with you! I don’t wanna make it stop~” It wasn’t until Clementine finished her line that she realized the position they were in, as well as how quiet the rest of the room had gotten.
Violet was what her attention was first drawn to; the way her eyes looked into the brunette’s dreamily, as well as the very red tint across her cheeks and ears. She noticed her hands next, one on the girls waist, and the other on her arm, keeping their bodies together. Clementine took in a shaky breath, gulping as she glanced over the blonde’s features just as she had done in the truck. From her eyes, to her nose, to her lips-”Why’d you stop?” If looks could kill, Louis would be dead. Hell, Louis would already be buried six feet under, grass grown over the dirt. Brody crossed her arms, the angriest glare she could muster angled the the brown haired boy. Marlon gave him a ‘what the hell’ look, holding his hand out. Meanwhile however, Clementine and Violet had moved away from each other and were now standing while rubbing their arm and neck, their faces equally as bright red. “I should...I’m gonna..change…” Violet muttered, sputtering over her words worse than a car with a dead battery. She quickly grabbed her bag, stepping into the bathroom and shutting the door behind her. Clem stared after her, a worried look on her face; had she gone too far?
Brody sighed, interrupting the silence. “You gonna swim, Clem?” Clementine tensed visibly; she was sure they had heard the story. The story of the girl who had nearly drowned in a frozen lake, but had been saved by her young uncle who, unfortunately, didn’t make it out of the lake himself. She was also sure, however, that they had no idea they went to the same school as her; let alone that it was Clementine. Chills ran over her skin merely at the thought; she hated water. “I-Uh-I-No.” She managed to mutter out, causing Brody to give her a small look of concern. “Alright then, suit yourself.” She sighed, before walking off to change. After a few minutes, most of the group had already changed and was heading into the pool. Clem bent over, picking out her more comfortable clothes, before heading for the other bathroom.
Clementine and Violet seemed to walk out in perfect unison, each putting their clothes back into their bags, before walking to the stairway once more. They wore similar outfits; Vi a tank top and shorts, and Clem a muscle tank with shorts as well. The brunette glanced down at Violet’s hand, glancing up to the girl to find that Violet was currently staring at her hand. With only a moment of hesitation, Clem quickly grabbed Violet’s hand, before starting up the stairs, pushing the awkward tension from earlier out of their minds. As they approached the pool room, they could already hear the loud music blaring. Clem opened the door, holding it open for Vi, before leading her to the left side of the pool. “I revoke you as captain. They were gonna kiss, you moron!” She heard Brody shout, putting her hands up in the air. “You can’t revoke me from captain! You’re only co-captain! I have more power!” Louis argued back, causing Clem to sigh in realization that she wasn’t going to understand whatever it was they were talking about. Violet sat, sticking her legs in the light blue water, her hand being held by none other than Clem. Clementine however, sat with her knees to her chest, one arm around her legs and the other holding Violet’s hand. As the song changed, the two glanced over to the door, watching as Marlon used the damp floor to his advantage, sliding out after the first set of chords.
Violet chuckled, shaking her head. “Dear god…” She sighed, earning a eyebrow raise from the brunette next to her. “What?” She asked, shifting her gaze as Violet nodded to the boy. The same set of chords played again, signaling Marlon to twist around and begin the awful lip syncing. “Oh…” Clementine muttered, her face contorting into one of somewhat disgust. “Just take those old records off the shelf! I sit and listen to ‘em by myself…” He mouthed, flailing his body around to mirror the dance from the not-so-iconic movie. “Everytime this song comes on, he insists on doing this. There isn’t even a reason behind it, he just does it.” Violet shook her head, sighing. She mindlessly leaned her head against Clementine’s shoulder, staring off into the water and watching as the others splashed around. With another music change, Violet rolled her eyes. “Thank you, Ruby. Thank you…” She whispered to herself, causing Clementine to chuckle. Perhaps Outkast wasn’t exactly the best, but nothing was worse than Marlon lip syncing Bob Seger.
Time seemed to fly, several of the kids being pushed into the pool, belly flopping, and even holding competitions of,’who can stay under the longest?’ all of which, would have made Clem sick to her stomach, had she not been more focused on the blonde next to her. The two sat quietly, leaning against each other and holding hands for at least an hour, not paying attention as they were lost in thought. Clem sat up, grudgingly releasing Violet’s hand as she stood up. “Where you going?” Violet asked quickly, a small frown on her face. “I’m just gonna go check my phone. Lee said to keep him updated on what’s going on…” She sighed, smiling softly. “I’ll be right back, Vi.” Violet nodded, turning her attention back to the pool. It wasn’t until she heard a grunt and a squeal that she glanced into the direction that Clem had walked off in, her eyes widening as she realized Marlon had pushed the brunette in.
As for Clementine however, her foot barely made it off the ledge as he pushed her, her eyes going wide at the lack of footing. Her elbows moved down, attempting to catch her in her fall, only to panic her further as she felt no ground beneath her. Within seconds she was under the water, with no one but Violet and Marlon paying attention. She gasped instinctively, moving her arms in attempts to get to her to the surface, only to fill her lungs with water. Her head barely made it above the water as a cough half echoed, her mouth once more going back underwater and her arms continuing to flail around in attempts to stabilize her. The cough forced not only the water out of her lungs, but the remaining air as well. Her body instinctively gasped for another breath despite the fact that she was under water, only further filling her lungs with water and causing her to choke, her vision becoming somewhat blurry and panicked thoughts filling her mind.
This is exactly how it happened with Luke. He fell in the water, got his foot caught on a branch, and drowned, freeing her. It had been her fault, and that was something she had learned to accept. Except, she hadn’t been near any deep bodies of water since then. Not baths, not pools, and certainly not another lake; let alone this time of year when the ice would be ‘frozen over’ like it had been that day. As she felt something touch her arm, she jerked her body with wide eyes, grabbing onto it and attempting to push it off. This only lead to it grabbing onto her with force, dragging her up. ‘Not again…’
“C’mon…!” Violet huffed worriedly, panting slightly as she lifted Clem up out of the water and onto the side of the pool where they had previously sat, the brunettes body shaking violently with coughs, gasping for air as she laid on her side, Violet moving up next to her. “My hair may look like a dead cat, but your girlfriend looks like a drowned one.” Marlon chuckled, not paying any attention to the sputtering coughs. “Fuck you.” Violet spat at him, causing him to give her a questioning look. “Relax, Vi...I’m only kidding, I didn’t- Holy shit-” Marlon interrupted himself, kneeling down next to the brunette as she coughed the water out of her lungs, the rest of the group’s attention now on them.
“What the hell happened?!” Brody asked impatiently, worry seeping through her voice as she speedily walked over. “Marlon’s an idiotic asshat, that’s what.” Violet grumbled, glaring up at him as she attempted to somewhat comfort Clementine, making sure she got all the water out of her lungs. The brunette felt tears well up in her eyes, her breathing shaky and erratic as she shivered, her eyes wide and blood shot. Violet somewhat picked her up, cradling her. “C’mon…” She mumbled, Brody and the others moving out of the way as Violet helped the wet brunette up, watching her steps as she walked her down to the basement. “Clem, are you okay?” She spoke softly, sitting her down and looking her in the eye as she spoke. Clementine didn’t answer as she seemed to stare through Violet’s eyes, her teeth chattering. “Clementine…?” Violet asked slowly, earning a groggy, strained response from her,”I’m fine.”
The blonde frowned, grabbing hold of the other girl’s hand. “Just...Try to take deep breaths, calm down, let your mind relax…” She whispered, opening her bag to see if Clementine had brought any other set of clothes. She had the clothes that she was going to wear tomorrow that were dry, but relatively uncomfy. Violet bit her lip, sighing, before digging into her own bag. She pulled out the sweatshirt she had worn that day, along with an extra pair of sweatpants she had brought incase she got cold in the shorts over night. “Clem? Listen, I want you to take these and go put them on in the bathroom, alright? There should be towels in there, take a warm shower, it should help to keep you from shivering, okay?” She asked her. Clementine’s reaction was somewhat slow as she moved without haste, slowly taking the clothes from the blonde and making her way over to the bathroom. Violet quickly got out the shirt she had been wearing prior to changing, as well as the sweatpants she had worn, quickly putting the dry clothes on as Clementine showered.
It had been a relatively long time, at least fifteen minutes, which was admittedly long for the brunette, but to be expected. After all, she had already been tired after a long day of school and running around at the park; being forced into a pool and helplessly trying to keep herself above the water only added to that factor, making her as sluggish as ever. As soon as the door opened again, Violet snapped her head to the brunette, walking up to her and hugging her tightly. Clem stood, gulping, before slowly wrapping her arms around her and hugging back. Her lip quivered slightly, eyes stinging, though she had no idea what from; was it from the chlorine in the pool water that had seeped into her eyes? Or was it from the cool air hitting them right after the burning hot shower she had just taken? Maybe it was a bit of both, but it was almost surely from the tears rising to her eyes. “I’m here.” Violet muttered quietly, not bothering to let go; she would hug her for as long as she needed.
Clementine felt her heart skip a beat at Violet’s words, finding that they had much more meaning than anyone might have thought. It wasn’t the common ’I’m sorry’ that people normally said when something of this matter happened; that only made things worse, knowing that the situation was so bad people were pitying her. It wasn’t the cliche ‘ Are you okay?’ either; of course she wasn’t okay. For the first time in years she had been in another body of water, involuntarily, and the same thing that made her so scared of them in the first place had only happened again. No, Violet had chosen ‘I’m here’. She wasn’t stating the obvious “I’m with you in Brody’s house”, but rather the fact that she was there. Whatever happened or was going to happen, she was going to be there. If the brunette needed to talk, or if she needed a hug, or anything of the sort, Violet was telling her that she was there, and she would be there, for all of it.
The two had been standing for two or so minutes, and if Clem had any choice, they would’ve stayed there for hours. Unfortunately for her, Brody came rushing down the stairs, panic on her face. “Clem, Marlon told me what happened, I-” “-I’m sorry” The boy apologized from right behind her. “I-I didn’t know you couldn’t swim, I just thought you weren’t getting in because-” “-because?” Violet interrupted him. Marlon looked to Violet with a frown; this, no doubt, had put a MASSIVE hole in their friendship, but he was determined to do everything in his power to fix it. “I’m sorry, Clementine.” He breathed out, frowning. She hated this. Being put on the spot to reply. Either she said nothing, which would only be taken as a negative response, or she said it was ‘okay’, which it most definitely was not. At this point, she had no idea what to say to the blonde. What could she say to him? “Hey, it’s cool, I have no idea how to swim and have a terrible past with swimming, but no biggie! Don’t worry about it!” No way.
As if Violet had seen her hesitation, she grabbed the brunettes hand reassuringly, looking towards him. “Just...Go upstairs Marlon...Not right now…” She huffed, watching as he frowned and hung his shoulders, slowly walking back up the stairs to be with the rest of the group. Speaking of which, where was the rest of the group? Brody took notice of Violet glancing around and listening for any sign of them, causing her to give a half smile of sadness. “We never stopped to get drinks on the way home...It slipped my mind with the cold air, and I wanted to be sure you made it home okay.” She started, directing her sentence at Violet. “Louis, Mitch, and Omar took Willy and Tenn to the store, they’re gonna get drinks and snacks of the sort. Ruby is upstairs listening for the pizza guy, and Aasim is cleaning up the pool.” She finished, only looking at them out of the corner of her eyes. “Clem, I had no idea any of this would happen...I can drive you home as soon as Louis and the boys get back if you want?” She asked quietly.
Clementine would be lying if she said she hadn’t thought about it; On one hand, if she went home, she could somewhat relax. On the other, if she went home, she would be alone. She couldn’t tell Lee about this seeing as he would undoubtedly drive right over and beat the life out of Marlon, and AJ was too young to understand. Taking a deep breath, she shook her head. “I’ll be fine…” She mumbled, deciding that staying with her present company and being somewhat weary was better than going home alone and having nothing to distract her from the terrible memories of what had happened at the lake. Not to mention she had made Violet come, and would feel like a jerk if she left her there. Brody nodded in understanding. “I’m gonna go make you some coffee, let me know if I can help at all?” She asked her, receiving a nod from the still shivering brunette.
Violet watched the girl, worry in her eyes. She knew something had to have happened to make the girl react the way she did, but she wasn’t going to pry; Clementine would tell her when she was ready. “Thank you”. Violet focused her attention on Clementine once more, tilting her head in confusion. “What for…?” She asked quietly, squeezing her hand reassuringly. “For...Pulling me out. I know you said you only wanted to stick your feet in, but now you’re all wet and-” “-Hey,” Violet interrupted, looking into her golden brown eyes. “I don’t care if Im wet. I can change clothes. I wasn’t going to let you just-... struggle, Clem... I promise, I won’t ever let anything happen to you so much as I can help it.” Her lip quivered, eyes searching the blonde’s. She wasn’t lying, that was for sure. She couldn’t help but feel the butterflies in her stomach; She was sure that she liked her, and now she thought she might even be in love with her. Violet only gave her a side smile, knowing she would do whatever she had to to help her.
“C’mon, let’s...Sit. Before they take all the good seats…” Violet huffed, only half joking. She walked over to the couch, crawling into the circled center that was sat back further than the rest of the couch, giving her enough room to lay out her already rather small legs. Clementine didn’t hesitate to join her, curling up next to the blonde, knowing she’d have no problem with it. The two sat there for a few minutes, before a loud thump along with heavy footsteps filled the air. Louis’ familiar voice filled the air once more, causing Violet to roll her eyes. “And you, over think, always speak, critically, I should know,” The boy sang, carrying multiple bags of food down the stairs. As he nearly slipped, he screeched, only for his words to come out in tune with the song. “That floor has got to change!” Violet turned around, keeping her hand intertwined with Clem’s. “Are you singing Katy Perry…?” She asked, a small smile on her face as she teased him. Louis, instead of coming up with an insult, only glared at her as he continued to sing, skipping a few lines so it added up. “ You don't really want to stay, no,” He accused Violet, before turning to Clem in hopes to get her to smile, putting his hip out sassily and continuing to sing, tilting his head back and hollering. ”But you don't really want to go-o,” The boy’s singing was now accompanied by a head banging into a wall.
Violet glanced behind Louis, to find Mitch was the source of the noise. “He made us listen to Katy Perry the whole time.” He grumbled, frowning at the boy. “You poor soul…” Violet teased, faking pity. “I’ll have you know, Katy Perry is amazing. Especially her older stuff.” Louis interrupted matter of factly, moving behind the bar and putting what Violet assumed was ice cream into the freezer and fridge. “You’re so gay,” She scoffed, rolling her eyes. “That’s one of her best songs!” He only added, not understanding what she meant. Brody walked down the stairs, a coffee cup in her hand. “Who’s gay?” She asked eagerly. “Did someone come out? And I missed it?” She frowned, though looking at Clementine expectedly at out of the corner of her eye. “No, no one has come out; yet anyways. I have no doubt Violet has infected someone with the gay, though.” Louis shrugged, not saying any names but making Brody chuckle. Violet simply lifted her free hand, flipping the boy the bird, before drawing her knee up to her chest and resting her arm on it.
Brody carefully walked over, handing Clementine the mug of coffee. The brunette hesitantly let go of Violet’s hand, chills running down her spine as the heat from the cup radiated into her hands. “T-thanks…” She mumbled, her teeth quietly chattering. As the rest of the group filed into the room, Brody fiddled with the TV remote, turning to the group expectedly as it turned on. “OK, what are we watching?” She asked, her hand on her hip. There was a moment of silence, before Mitch shrugged. “What about Titanic?” He asked. Violet’s eyes widened, turning to the boy with a deadpan look on her face. She glanced to Clementine worriedly, finding that she was too focused on the cup of coffee to have heard what he said. “Uhh…” Brody started awkwardly,”Lets...Not watch that…” She trailed off, Aasim facepalming in the background: “Moron”. “Ok well, what about-” The sudden ringing of a door bell interrupted Omar, causing Brody to throw the remote in their general direction. “You pick something, I’m gonna go upstairs and get the pizza.” She shook her head, hoping they’d pick something reasonable. Clem glanced up from the cup of coffee, fiddling with the handle. “I-Uh...Do you have milk…?” She spoke barely above a whisper. Brody nodded, giving a somewhat supportive smile. Her hands shook as she slowly untucked her legs and stood up, Violet not missing a beat and getting up with her as they walked up the stairs.
Brody opened the door, talking with the guy and handing him some money before walking back in. Violet shifted her gaze from Clementine, her eyebrow raising as she noticed the number of boxes. “Jesus, Brody. Six pizza’s…?” “What! Have you forgotten last year? Louis ate nearly two. By himself. I’m not ordering more this year. I’d rather have extra than not enough.” She shrugged, glancing to Clementine. The brunette had her eyebrows furrowed, another chill running down her spine as she put the milk back into the fridge. A sudden screech from the basement drew their attention, causing Brody to roll her eyes. As they walked towards the basement and down the stairs, they heard a brief argument before it suddenly stopped. The three rounded the corner, another masculine scream filling the air. This one however, sounded much older than any of the kids in the basement were, causing Brody to question what the hell they were doing. As soon as her eyes landed on the TV, she sighed in disappointment. “I said pick something reasonable, not traumatizing!” She scolded, causing Mitch to raise his arms. “What’s wrong with SAW?” He argued, another scream filling the basement as the man on the screen yanked a ring through his skin. Clementine shuddered, keeping her eyes on the floor as she and Violet walked over to their spot. “I think I’m gonna be sick…” She muttered, having not been the best with gore. “I’m right there with ya’.” Ruby agreed, snatching the remote and going back to the main screen. “Can’t yall just agree on somethin’ more humorous?” She scoffed, causing the group to groan. “High School Musical?” “No.” “Grease?” “No.” “ANYTHING Marvel?” “Eh, nah.”
Brody herself glared. “What about a TV show then?” “What about The 100?” “Nope, we’ve got enough gay, thanks to Vi-” “-Fuck off.” “The Walking Dead?” “What the hell is that?” “A show about living people in chairs. What do you think, dumbass? It’s about dead people.” “No thanks.” “If you fuckers dont agree on something soon I’m turning on Barbie Dream House.” “Fine! What about...I don’t know, I hear Stranger Things is good?” Omar suggested,looking around as the group shrugged. “Stranger Things it is.” Ruby sighed, opening the Netflix app and scrolling to find it. The rest of the group got up, snatching a box of pizza and returning to their seats, sharing with whoever was next to them. Violet moved to grab one, only to have one presented in front of her. Marlon gave her a small, apologetic smile, his eyes begging for forgiveness. She simply sighed and shook her head. She wasn’t going to forgive him that easily; it was stupid and dangerous, and he needed time to think about why he wasn’t going to do it again. “Heads up!”
Violet glanced up just in time to see a can of soda headed for the two. Had it not been for her catching it, it most likely would’ve hit Clementine in the face. “If you idiots could be any more reckless…” She trailed off, shaking her head before setting it down to catch the next one that was thrown at her. She turned her head to Clementine, taking notice of her empty coffee cup. “Do you want more…? I can go get you some, or, there's water, and soda…” Violet asked her softly, her worried eyes taking in the girls still shivering figure. “Water is okay…” She mumbled, setting her coffee on the table behind them before gently taking the bottle into her hand. Violet scooted over, sitting right up against the brunette in attempts to get her to warm up. She opened the pizza box for both of them to share, Brody signalling the start of the show as she turned off the lights. The group sat, stuffing their faces with pizza and chips, watching the show eagerly. “He’s gonna die. He’s so dead.” “Dude, it’s above you! Hello!” Mitch and Aasim shouted at the TV, a silence filling the room as whatever it was killed the scientist. “I told you.” Mitch sighed, taking another bite of the pizza before going silent.
The group continued to watch several episodes of the show, comparing themselves to characters and certain things they did, as well as munching on the several snacks they had gotten, until they had finished half of the first season. By then it was late in the night, and everyone was starting to doze off. “Ok, that’s it…” Brody sighed, collecting the remote and pausing it. “I’m going to bed…” She muttered, grabbing the large stack of blankets from off a chair and beginning to hand them out. “Louis, Marlon, you two take the couch. Ruby, you and I can share the inflatable mattress, Tenn you’ve got recliner, Mitch, Aasim, and Willy, you guys are-” She couldn’t even get the words out as she turned to them, noticing they were already passed out on the floor. She lazily threw a partially folded comforter over them, shaking her head. “Vi, Clem, are you guys okay with the futon?” She asked, yawning and looking at them with tired eyes. “What! I thought I got the fut-” Louis didn’t get the rest of his sentence out as he was hit in the face by a pillow. “Rude.” Violet shrugged, glancing at the half asleep brunette next to her. “Cmon, Clem…” She yawned, earning a small groan in response. She shook her head, smiling as she picked the girl up, carrying her over to the futon and softly setting her down. Brody was about to give them their two blankets, before an idea popped into her head, causing her to hide one of them behind her back. “Here you go~” She whispered sweetly, Violet being too tired to question it. She took the comforter, laying it over Clementine before plopping into bed next to her. She heard everyone stop shuffling, figuring that they had gotten into their positions, before letting her eyes close, falling asleep.
-
It had to be at least five, if not six when Violet woke up, still half asleep having only been out for an hour or two. She sighed, angry at herself for waking up for no reason. At a sudden shiver, her eyes traveled to the brunette next to her. At some point in the night, Violet had stolen the whole blanket, leaving an already shivering Clementine with nothing. She frowned, untucking the blanket from around her and attempting to drape it over the brunette as well, only to find that it was nowhere near big enough, and she would undoubtedly end up hogging it again. She contemplating taking Louis’ blanket, before shaking her head; it was cold, and even she wasn’t that mean. Her eyes nervously traveled to the brunette once more, before she scooted closer, wrapping her arms around the girl, draping the blanket over both of them, and allowing the girls head to rest at her chest. Her cheeks had to be bright red, but it was too dark for anyone to have seen; they were all asleep anyways. The brunette sighed in her sleep, unconsciously snuggling closer to the blonde, nuzzling her head in her neck. Violet smiled softly, her eyes soon beginning to close again as she fell back asleep.
-
“So you did it on purpose?” “Of course I did! It worked, didn’t it?” “Maybe you should be the captain…”
Clementine’s lip twitched, her eyebrows furrowing in annoyance. Who the hell was talking, and how did she get them to shut up? She tried to fall back asleep, nuzzling back into place and relaxing, only to snap her eyes open. She was met with pale skin, as well as a few strands of blonde in her face, thankfully accompanied by warmth. It didn’t take a genius to figure out it was Violet, but she’d be lying if she said she wasn’t worried. Had she been the one to curl up to the blonde? Or had the blonde been the one to initiate it? She was about to pull back, only to feel Violet’s arms around her waist, pulling her close and keeping her there. A small twitch of a smile spread across her face, somewhat assuring her that the girl wouldn’t have any problem with it. Clementine curled back up, relaxing and letting out a peaceful sigh. As she once more nuzzled into Violet’s neck.
She didn’t know how long she laid there. It had to be at least a few hours, right? At the sudden thump of a pillow hitting her backside, she heard a groan from the blonde next to her. “Wake up, sleepyheads~” Louis cooed, laughing. Rightfully, he choked on his laugh once he realized how close Vi and Clem had been when they slept. They had been more than close; they were cuddling. He turned with his mouth agape to Brody, who had nearly the same expression on her face. “What do you want…?” Violet groaned, keeping her eyes closed and pulling the brunette impossibly closer. “I’d love to let you two lay in bed all day, but the rest of us have been up for hours and are hungry,” Brody sighed, crossing her arms,“Everyone’s already upstairs.” Violet frowned and grumpily hugged Clementine tighter. “I don’t need breakfast. That’s what lunch is for.” She groaned. Clem couldn’t help the blush across her face; Violet was cuddling her. Tightly. And the fact that she didn’t want to have to get up either made it so much better.
“Don’t test me: I will leave you here,” Brody threatened, only half joking. Violet laid for a minute, stuffing her head next to Clementine’s and contemplating; “...Where are we going?” Louis rolled his eyes. “Waffle House, we can stop and get you donuts on the way. Now let’s go~” He whined. Violet huffed, kicking the blanket off of her. She softly rubbed Clem’s shoulder, only to take the pillows and throw them at Brody and Louis. “Stupid. Fuckheads. Making me. Get up.” She complained, glaring at them as she walked over to her bag, grumbling to herself. Louis quirked an eyebrow: “Enlighten me, what is a ‘fuckhead’?” Clem only lazily sat up, her eyes half closed as she watched the blonde grumble her way into the bathroom. Her face jolted back as she was hit with a pillow, a small smile on Brody’s face. “You too.” She hummed, folding her arms before shoving Louis up the stairs to wait with the rest of the group. Clementine sighed, sluggishly moving from her position on the futon to her bag, picking out her clothes. Glancing at the jacket she had stowed away, she toyed with the fabric of Violet’s sweatshirt, before stuffing her own back into the bag, walking into a different room to change.
Clementine stepped out of the room, yawning and walking over to her bag to put away her clothes & toiletries, only to see Violet doing the same thing. Violet’s eyebrow raised, a small smile spreading across her features. “You’re still wearing my hoodie…” She trailed off, her eyes washing over how it fit the girl perfectly. Clem nervously tugged on it, looking back up to the blonde. “I- Do you want it back…?” She nearly whispered, her mood dropping at the thought. The blonde shook her head. “The way it looks on me doesn’t even compare to how it looks on you. You keep it.” She smiled, causing butterflies in her stomach. The two finished putting away their things before standing up and heading towards the rest of the group. As they entered the garage, Brody wiggled her eyebrows. “You two took your time, huh?” She questioned, earning an eye roll. Brody smiled softly, before walking over to a black, expensive looking van. “My dad said we can take this today since the Waffle House is far away and I don’t want to get pulled over for having you guys in the truck bed.” She mumbled, opening the driver side door and allowing the others to get in. Clementine and Violet crawled all the way into the back, knowing that they’d be able to avoid any interaction with anyone else this way. Clem leaned on Violet’s shoulder, her eyes still heavy with sleep. The blonde could only give a quiet smile, her head resting on top of Clem’s as they leaned back into the seat.
The car soon jolted out of the garage, the radio being turned on and the front windows rolled down. Clementine swallowed nervously, keeping her grip on the blonde’s arm as she snuggled into her side. “Uh...Thank you...For..Sharing- For- For the- Cuddling, er, blanket?” She sputtered, her voice barely above a whisper. Violet snickered, lightly shaking her head. “It was either I cuddle you, or have you shiver all night; One of which is much more pleasant than the other.” She mused, her heart filling with warmth. She racked over every detail she had managed to take in about the brunette from the night before. From every crease on her baseball cap, to the part in her hair; pouring from her eyes and down the bridge of her nose, all the way to the smooth curve of her lips, and the small dimples on either side of her cheeks. The mere thought made Violet’s heart swell, her arms wrapping around the brunette and hugging her tightly. Clem widened her eyes slightly, though grabbing onto the girls arms. “What’s this for…?” Violet only let out a shaky sigh, closing her eyes. “No reason.” She mumbled softly, knowing there was an undoubtable reason that she wasn't quite ready to say yet.
The group drove for thirty or so minutes, before slowly crawling out of the black vehicle and walking into the thankfully uncrowded Waffle House. “Aasim, Omar, Tenn, Willy,Ruby, Mitch and Marlon, you two can sit there.” Brody nodded at the largest table, purposely leaving out the four of them to sit at another one seeing as they wouldn’t have been able to join the others anyways due to lack of table space. “So,” The brunette started, taking her seat in the booth and watching as Clementine and Violet did the same. “Do you know what you’re gonna have to eat?” She asked sweetly, a tight lipped smile on her face. Violet shrugged, Clementine laying her head in her hands: “I’ll probably just get like...an egg, or something…” She sighed, yawning and glancing to the brunette next to her. “You gonna have a coffee, Clem?” She asked, earning a mumbled ‘yes’ in response. Violet shrugged, not noticing the mischievous look in Brody’s face. “I’m gonna go use the bathroom…” She trailed off, scooting out of the booth and leaving Louis to sit awkwardly with the two. He glanced from one to the other, raising as eyebrow. “Why’re you two so tired? Something keep you up?” He hinted, wiggling his eyebrows, though getting no response he was looking for.
“Clem was up half the night shivering, my fault for stealing the blanket, and I’ve been so focused on doing homework for school that I haven’t had time to sleep much all week.” Violet shrugged, watching as Louis’ jaw dropped. “You? Doing homework?” he questioned, only half joking. Violet rolled her eyes: “I promised Clem Id try to keep my grades up, and I’ve got extra classes trying to bring my GPA up.” She grumbled, resting her head in her hand. Louis snickered, shaking his head. “She’s got a good impact on you…” He trailed off, only to receive a glare. “I’m right here Louis, but thank you, I try.” She huffed, returning her head to her arms. Brody soon returned, a smirk on her face, and a waitress following to take their orders. She soon walked off, causing Brody’s already tight lipped smile to tighten as she tried to keep her face as straight as possible. “What’s up with you? You look like you went into the bathroom and got held hostage or something…Is there a bomb? You can tell us!” Louis whispered, causing Brody to shrug. “Nothin’...” She trailed off, before slipping her phone out of her pocket and pretending to scroll on it. A few moments later, the waitress returned. “An iced tea for you...A water... Coffee-” The waitress fumbled on her words as the cup slipped out of her hands, spilling all over Violet. “Shit! Fuck- Fucking- Son of a bitch, stupid fucking piece of-” She hissed, swearing like a sailor at the burning sensation. “I’m so sorry!” The waitress apologized, causing Violet to huff and wave her off. “It’s...It’s alright...Brody can I have the keys to the van so I can see if there’s an extra shirt or something?” She asked, looking up to see Brody with her keys already out as if she had known it would happen.
The blonde gave her a questioning look, before taking them and walking out, Clementine following her. She opened the trunk, rummaging through random things, only to groan and shake her head. “Nothing. You’ve got to be kidding.” She sighed, shaking her head. Clem glanced down to the sweatshirt she was wearing, before pulling it over her head. “This is yours anyways…” She mumbled, offering a small smile. Violet glanced at her, noticing the way her shirt rode up slightly when she took off the sweatshirt, before shaking her head with a sigh. “Thanks, Clem...I’ll give it back when we get to Brody’s and I can steal one of her shirts.” She grumbled, slipping off her shirt and quickly putting on the hoodie. Clementine watched with calm eyes, following the blonde’s every movement, before looking back up to her when she grumbled. “I’m a mess. I’ve got coffee on part of my hair, my skin is sticky, and it stings like a bitch. Not to mention I look like I probably peed myself.” She groaned again, shutting the trunk. Clementine gave a small chuckle, before shrugging. “I think you look beautiful...even with coffee in your hair.”
Violet slowly turned to the girl, her eyebrows furrowed. She’d be lying if she said she hadn’t gotten butterflies in her stomach at her words, a light pink blush dusting over her cheeks. The brunette looked at her nervously, her own cheeks somewhat red. Violet couldn’t help but feel her heart swell once more, her face softening. She glanced at her face, running her eyes over it, before soft leaning in and kissing her. She hasn't even realized she was doing it if she was honest. With the events of the past 24 hours, it seemed as if it was completely normal; as if she had done it a hundred times before and this only added to that. It was quick, and short, but it still caused Violet to jerk her head back and smack her forehead. “I don't know why I did that, I'm s-” The blonde was interrupted as Clementine leaned forward, kissing her again. This one was only slightly longer, but it meant a whole lot more. Violet’s eyes widened, her heart hammering out of her chest. “Don't apologize. Its...It was nice…” The brunette trailed off, somewhat grumbling her reply. She wasn't good at romance and she never had been; this was...acceptable, right? Perhaps she should have done it another way... Meanwhile, however, the two turned their attention back to the waffle house as a loud ‘YES!’ filled the air, causing Clem to raise an eyebrow. “I knew Brody liked Waffle House, but I didn't think she liked it this much…” She trailed off, causing Violet to roll her eyes and sigh. “I don't think that was because of Waffle House..."