"𝐎𝐇 𝐌𝐘 𝐆𝐎𝐃, 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐋𝐈𝐄," Sarah gasped, "You look stunning!"
She was sitting on the edge of her bed, leaning back on her hands, when I pushed open her bedroom door and stepped inside. The dress I was wearing was long and silky, and reached just above my ankles, and I held it up to walk. Sarah, who was comfortably sitting on the bed, ready to watch me parade in, was wearing her long white dress that hugged her body perfectly, with delicate loose straps that hung off the shoulder.
We had gotten caught while grabbing the plat map of TannyHill. When had I asked her in the room— at first, she seemed taken aback and slightly confused, but I had lowered my eyes, meaning something else, and she figured it out within seconds. We had snuck into the office covertly, and as she searched through the maps, the door had opened and in walked Ward. He immediately seemed skeptical to see his daughter searching his drawers.
Sarah had surprised me with her quick reflexes when she made up the excuse that I was curious about the island, and simply wanted to learn more about their marvellous home, so she had offered to show me one of the maps. I butted in and added that I was very into history and cartography, which was an undeniable lie— but it seemed like her dad believed it. He had even invited me for another visit, which was uncalled for, where he offered to tell me all that I wanted to know about TannyHill, some other time. Then we went to get dressed.
When we had gotten back to her bedroom, the two of us were in fits of laughter. She mocked me for my cheap lie for saying I was a history-buff, and I admired her for the quick reasonable excuse. I had then found myself sitting on her bed, watching her search through her ginormous closet, for the dress she had stored for herself. It was a beautiful dress. I didn't know what I would wear, and there wasn't anything I owned that would be good enough, nor was there even time to check my own closet back on the Cut. I had apologized for the sudden need of a last-minute outfit.
But, before she could deny the apology and say that it wasn't my fault, she had pulled out a gorgeous pastel yellow, silky, long gown. My mouth had fallen open at the sight of it. She immediately told me that I had to wear it, and I didn't deny, because it was my favourite colour, and the perfect style of dress I'd always wanted. She was smiling from ear-to-ear when she handed it to me, and I took the silky gown in my hands, admiring how beautiful it was already. Without another word, Sarah had excitedly grabbed my shoulders and shoved me out of the room, towards the washroom at the end of the hall.
I could hardly believe my eyes when I had fully put it on, and looked at my reflection in the bathroom mirror. I looked like I was going to an event, something that my parents would attend somewhere in Hollywood. The dress was supposed to be short, reaching the calves, but with Sarah's height being taller than mine— the yellow dress reached just above my ankles at the perfect length. It hugged my body in the right places, didn't outline any of my flaws, and the low neck left room for a necklace or two.
"Holy shit, dude," Sarah's eyes were shining when I stepped into the room, my hands holding up some of the length of the dress so I wouldn't trip.
Flattered, I looked down at my bare feet walking on her hard-wood floors, and used an unoccupied hand to push my hair behind my ears. I walked right over to the full-length mirror she had in the corner of her room, next to the window.
"Where'd you even get this dress, Sarah," I said through small laughs, liking the look of it even more in her mirror.
"I was supposed to wear it for spring formal last year, but I never went," she answered fondly, standing up from the bed.
A genuine smile was plastered over my lips as I trailed my hands down the soft silk of the gown, enjoying the way the material felt underneath my fingers.
"It looks better on you than it did for me. Wait until John B sees you in that," she winked, and let out a laugh, stepping up to stand next to my body in the mirror. "Here, you wanna wear one of my necklaces," she suddenly offered, after looking down to my bare neck.
"Really?" I said, as she lunged over to her small makeup desk. "I feel like I'm borrowing too much of your things," a small laugh fell past my mouth.
"Of course not," she waved her hand back nonchalantly, signifying that it wasn't a big deal, "Look— I have a golden one with a C on it," she announced proudly, while latching her fingers around the thin necklace. "I used to wear mine, the S, and this one for my initials in like fifth grade."
She placed the golden chain in my palm.
"I don't wear it anymore," she shrugged calmly, standing next to me in the mirror again, "I only wear my Sarah one. You can have it if you'd like,"
"Are you serious?" I said with a loud laugh, sort of in disbelief at how kind she was being. "I feel like I need to repay you, or something,"
"Don't be silly," she giggled. She reached her hand forward and grabbed the small necklace, bringing it up to my neck. "I don't wear it at all, so its all yours," she was saying, as I held up my hair for her to attach it behind. "C for Charlotte." A cheeky smile was on her lips.
"Thank you, Sarah," I smiled at her through the reflection, fondly, "for all of this," I glanced down to the dress.
"No problem," she shrugged, her cheeks puffing from her grin, "You look amazing anyways, Charlie," she tapped my shoulders, causing me to giggle, before she stepped to the side.
"How should I do my hair," I asked, not really knowing any hairstyles to do.
"Leave it loose, like that," she looked at my head, "and I'll get you a flower drown on the way out," she told, while slouching over, and grabbing her white heels beside the mirror, "we get tons of those shits sent to us for Midsummers every year," her eyes rolled.
I let out a tiny laugh, and ran my fingers through my hair to tame it, figuring it didn't look all that bad. The soft grands of it lay over my shoulders, naturally waved, shaping my face in a perfect way. I wasn't wearing makeup, other than mascara and lip balm, and I asked if it was enough.
She offered to let me borrow one of her lip glosses. While I chose one, Sarah then reached into the bottom of her closet, and out of my peripheral vision, I could see her pull out a tan pair of high heels. "These would look sick," she mused, while placing them on the bed.
"Why are you like," I stopped, finishing applying the layer of lip gloss, and closing the tube, "so nice to me, Sarah?"
"What do you mean," she responded calmly, while folding clothes on her bed.
I placed the tube back where I had found it, and turned around to face her. "Why are you always so nice to me," I said, my voice quiet but sweet. I said it as kindly as I could, genuinely not understanding.
She let out a sigh, placing the shirt on top of the jean shorts, "I guess, like, I don't really have a best friend," she said slowly and with a slight sad expression, "I mean, I have friends, but, you know."
A small smile rose to meet my lips, "I don't have a best friend either," I replied, trying to make her feel better.
"What about John B?" She narrowed her eyebrows. I didn't know if she knew I was also hanging out with the rest of his group as well.
"A girl best friend," I corrected myself.
"Oh," She hummed out, a smile meeting her lips.
"I was, like, homeschooled," I admitted, figuring she should know. "My whole life."
"Well," Sarah said with an enthusiastic tone, reaching back for the heels. She grabbed them in both hands and then slowly stepped up to me, "then I think it's fate we met each other," she smiled a cheesy smile. We both erupted with laughter.
___
I had never been to such an exquisite gathering in all my life.
The Cameron family and I had had to wait for a while before people started arriving. While we sat in the main area of the ginormous Club, Sarah had told me it was because her father was soon to be crowned for something and we were guests of honour. So, I patiently waited beside her and her siblings, while Ward talked with administrators as they arrived, and Rose waltzed around with her pointed flower crown— which was deemed to eventually poke someone's eye out— and a champagne glass in her hand. By the time we'd spent an hour waiting in the main room, the place was swarming with Kooks.
Before leaving, I tried to imagine what it was going to be like. But it was not at all what I'd expected. Girls, from young to seniors, wore long gowns and high heels, their hair perfectly done up, a gigantic floral headpiece or flower crown on every head. The boys and men wore fashionable tuxedos, ties, or bow ties, and had their hair flawlessly slicked back or styled to perfection. I was nervous being surrounded by so many Kooks, just like I had been anxious at the pool party, feeling that they would all look at me weirdly. But absolutely no one knew who I was— and that was the problem I didn't think of.
I had told Sarah that I would be fine with walking out behind her family, since I wasn't related to them, but she insisted on me going, her arm interlocked with mine. She didn't even look for Topper, even though they were supposed to be presented hand-in-hand. I didn't really understand the whole point of it, but I figured her family was important, and needed to be introduced a certain way, so I held my tongue. Everyone had narrowed their eyebrows at the sight of me walking with Sarah. I tried to smile, but everyone, everyone at the party was looking at us, and specifically, me, the oddball.
For the first half of the party, I had stayed by Sarah's side the whole time, as she stole alcoholic beverages and danced to the music. I was laughing for most of it. Eventually, she had introduced me to people who came to greet her. She had introduced me to her aunts and uncles, and most of them had kept saying I looked vaguely familiar, despite me mentioning that it was my first time in Kildare County. It was odd, how many of her relatives were saying they've seen me before. After a while I had gotten used to it.
I was truly enjoying myself. Dancing to the live band, and swaying in my silk dress, I was having a good time, unexpectedly. It was fun to be a Kook for the night, and actually go to a big event for the first time. I wondered about my parents at one point, and what they would have said if they saw me partying alongside a bunch of other Kooks— and teenagers who were secretly getting drunk behind their parents' backs.
When Sarah had gone to say hello to some of her school friends, I had told her I was going to get something to eat. While walking over to the burger stand, I immediately recognized Kiara and Pope standing behind the grill, which caused my jaw to drop as I ran over to them.
Kiara was wearing a stunning purple silk dress and a huge flower crown, and Pope was working with his dad, serving the food. She unexpectedly hugged me right away. I was confused at why she was there, but held my tongue since I'd remembered John B mentioning something about her living on Figure Eight.
The three of us had surveyed the crowd of dancing Kooks from behind the grill, as I explained my presence at the party, and John B's plan. Kiara instantly asked why I was here with Sarah Cameron. She didn't sound demanding, or jealous, she just spoke the name with a tone of hatred. When I had glanced to Pope for something to say, he widened his eyes, and immediately I figured something was wrong between the two girls. So, I lied, and said that it was the only way for us to get the map that John B needed for the Merchant Project. I only hung around with them for a little bit, before returning to my Kook persona, dancing with Sarah in the crowd.
Now, the sun was down, the place lit up by fairy lights, and it was almost nine o'clock.
"Sarah," I wrapped my hand around her arm after checking the time, pulling her away from the guys she was dancing with, "It's nine." I whispered in a low voice, but still loud enough to hear over the music.
"Yeah— okay," she realized what I was talking about, quickly nodding, and placed her glass of something onto the nearest bench.
"Jj's coming," I said, covertly side-eyeing our surroundings to see if anyone was listening. I had noticed him walk up to the Country Club from the back, wearing a waiter outfit. "I have to meet John B at the bag drop, with the map."
"Got it," she said, nodding firmly.
"I'll see you soon," I told her. I knew where she had put the bag with the map.
She quickly nodded again, and then turned back to her other friends, keeping a close eye out for Jj who was marching through the crowd. The rich people were looking at me weirdly, as I swivelled my way quickly through the people, towards the bag drop. On the way to where Sarah had pointed to, I picked up the small bag with the map in it, and ran straight for the small gazebo-space. I could see John B leaning against the railing from far.
"John B," I said quietly, but loud enough for him to turn his head.
He turned himself around immediately, facing me with wide eyes. My hands were intertwined at my stomach as I shyly approached him standing there, the soft wind blowing past my hair held down by the crown.
"Charlie," he breathed out softly, refreshed to see me, looking down at my dress. "You look— you look beautiful," he whispered.
Before I could say anything else, I ran right up to him and wrapped my arms around his neck. His own quickly wrapped around my waist, holding me tightly against his body.
"Hi," he whispered on my shoulder with a laugh.
"Hi." A wide smile was on my lips when I pulled away from the hug.
"Did you get it?" He quickly asked, his hands still around my back.
"Duh," I rolled my eyes foolishly, "Who do you think I am. Come on, John B," I said sarcastically, while reaching into the small bag on my back. When I pulled out the map, his eyes went golden.
"You're good, Charlie," the cheekiest of smiles plastered over his face.
"I know," I shrugged proudly, placing my hands on his neck after he grabbed the map.
He shifted, and slipped the map into his own backpack. "You look absolutely stunning," he said genuinely, when he turned back around, making eye contact.
I grinned from ear-to-ear, before letting out a small laugh and attaching my lips with his softly. He kissed back, and instantly, a sea of butterflies began to swarm in every part of my stomach— and I loved the feeling of it. My hands were on the back of his neck, and one of his hands delicately cupped the side of my face, holding me close as the wind brushed past us.
"Sarah?" A loud shout was shot in our direction after a few seconds. I already knew it was Topper.
"What the fuck," John B whispered, when I abruptly pulled away, being startled.
"No! No— it's, um it's Charlotte!" I called back loudly, while letting my hands slip off of John B's shoulders. "I have to go," I whispered to him.
"Is that Topper?" John B asked with hatred in his voice. "The hell are you doing with Topper Thornton," He looked at me seriously.
I fixed the thin strap of my dress that had fallen down, "Nothing, John B," I said with narrowed eyebrows, confused as to why he would even ask. "I'll see you soon, you need to go." I spoke sternly.
Before he could reply, I was holding onto the straps of my small bag and quickly skipping away from the bag drop. Topper was standing near one of the entrances, his eyebrows furrowed sharply as I trotted towards him. I fake coughed.
"Oh, Charlotte," his face barely relaxed when he realized I wasn't Sarah.
"Hey, Topper," I tried to sound casual, as I cleared my throat uncomfortably.
"Who, uh, who were you talking to over there," he asked. It seemed like he wanted to get answers for something.
I pushed a strand of hair behind my ear, "Um, John B," I regretted it instantly, knowing they didn't like one another.
"What the fuck is John B doing here," Topper clenched his jaw, at the mention of John B's name. He looked past my shoulder.
"Nothing, Topper," I quickly assured, "He's not here to fight, or anything, I promise."
He looked around uncertainly, "Hey, do you know where Sarah was yesterday?" He questioned.
I felt my stomach tighten, "We went to Chapel Hill."
"She went to Chapel Hill," he repeated, "Uh, why— why'd you guys go to Chapel Hill?" He was talking sarcastically, as if mocking me.
"I wanted to go," I said uncomfortably, lying.
"Oh, okay," he said, but he wasn't really understanding. "Anyone else go with you?" He took a step towards me. His voice sounded dangerous, like he was trying to antagonize me now.
"No," I sharply narrowed my eyebrows at the sudden interrogation.
"I see," he nodded, clenching his jaw again. "Have you seen Sarah around?"
"I'm not sure, Topper," I looked at him oddly, trying to figure out what he wanted from me.
"Okay— well, when you see her," he took another step, lowering his intimidating eyes at me. "tell her to come and talk to me."
"Yeah, alright," I nodded firmly, squinting my eyes before swiftly turning away.
I figured our conversation was over, and I could just walk away, so that's what I did. I didn't know why he was interrogating me, and not Sarah. With my hands gripped onto the bag's straps, I glanced back at him with narrowed eyebrows, to see him staring at me angrily in the spot I'd left him, jaw clenched, looking as if I hadn't told him exactly what he wanted to know. I rolled my eyes.
"Oh, Mr. Dunleavy, I see you got your drink! Good, good, that's really nice for you," A familiar voice spoke loudly over the people talking, catching my attention as I neared the main entrance.
I looked forward to see Jj, dressed in his fake waiter attire, patting an old man's shoulder. "But I'm actually going to down that," Jj said, while grabbing the drink and raising it to his lips.
I stopped walking beside an older couple, when he shifted his eyes to me. He sent me a wink as signal, and then there was a security guard pulling him away. Jj then proceeded to shout things like an idiot, catching almost everyone's attention at the party, as the guard pushed and shoved him to obey. Jj would not stop, even pointed to Rose and said, "You look like Lady Liberty!"
Meanwhile I stood, unaware of what to do next, as the rich people gawked at his absurd mannerisms. And then, Kiara, who was standing with her parents, butted in and yelled for the guard to stop. Everyone gasped when Jj shoved the guard suddenly, sending him flying somewhere else, and then called for me and Kiara. Sarah and her dad were looking at me with sternly confused looks, and I didn't know what to do, me and Kiara exchanging glances.
But, before I knew it, Kiara was laughing and grabbing my hand, and we were running through the crowd of disapproving Kooks, our dresses blowing behind us.
Suddenly, I didn't care what they all thought of me, how differently I would be looked at by Sarah's family, because running from Midsummers sent a rush into my veins. Kiara let go of my hand and ran into Jj's arms, Pope didn't look back as his dad yelled his name, I ran straight for John B, and he caught me in a tight grasp.
There was a short second where I regretted leaving, but the instant moment that John B intertwined our fingers and dragged me along with him, laughs falling from my mouth and my hair blowing in the wind, a smile rose to my lips. And I felt happy.
✰༄✰
🥺🥺🥺
𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐢𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 :/
𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐊𝐒 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐑 80𝐊 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐒
𝐋𝐈𝐊𝐄 𝐖𝐓𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓𝐒 𝐈𝐍𝐒𝐀𝐍𝐄
𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐒𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐕𝐎𝐓𝐄𝐒
𝐀𝐀𝐇𝐇𝐇𝐇 𝐈𝐌 𝐂𝐑𝐘𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐆
𝐈 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄 𝐘𝐎𝐔
-- 𝐚𝐥𝐬𝐨 𝐀𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍: i just want to
let you know that sometimes updating
consistently is hard for me,
so please, *please* don't ever rush
me and tell me to update because
it makes me upset when i think
that i'm upsetting other people by
not writing fast enough. me being
upset sadly means we end up with
a shitty chapter and I don't want
that. so i'm just asking you to please
respect me, i am a teenager, who
is writing for fun.
- but a very big thank you to the
people who tell me to take my time 💛
𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐈𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐒 𝐈 𝐏𝐈𝐂𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐄
𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐋𝐈𝐄 𝐖𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐋𝐎𝐋 𝐀𝐇𝐀𝐇𝐀𝐇
𝐕𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐔𝐀𝐋 𝐇𝐔𝐆𝐒 🥰
𝐯𝐨𝐭𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 !!