𝙱𝙰𝙻𝙰𝙽𝙲𝙸𝙽𝙶 𝙰𝙲𝚃 | 𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚕𝚎𝚜 𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚜𝚔𝚒

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐗: 𝐓𝐫𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞

Pack Mentality

Hazel was living through her own personal hell. Search for the word 'nightmare' in a dictionary, and you would find a picture of her current situation.

Allison had invited her over to get ready before the triple date, and figuring she should try to make the best of a bad situation, Hazel had agreed to go. No one had given her any indication Lydia was also invited, yet the strawberry blonde was there.

She contemplated jumping out of Allison's window, but if she was still alive at the bottom it wouldn't be worth it.

The elements that came together to create her nightmare were quite simple. One, she was preparing for a date she didn't want to go on, with someone she didn't know. Two, she was trapped in a room with her ex-best friend, and her new friend who was desperately trying to spark civil conversation. Three, after fretting about her parents all through the night, the bags under her eyes were big enough to carry Lydia's attitude. Four, she'd had to actually dress up for the date she didn't even want to go on, because it was either that or Lydia threw a fit.

On top of all of that, her mind was still muddled from waking up beside Stiles. The pair had been tangled in each other's arms, but Hazel had extracted herself before the boy woke up to avoid any awkwardness. Her heart still hammered thinking about it. Waking up like that had been so nice, Hazel had had some thoughts that well exceeded the 'just friends' boundaries, and now she was confused about her own feelings.

The sound of his soft breathing, the warmth of his arms, and the relaxed look on his face were all things she couldn't get out of her mind. What she wouldn't give to experience those things every morning. What she wouldn't give for him to look so at peace more regularly.

Throughout the day, she had been sure he said something important, but she couldn't for the life of her remember what.

The worst part was that she had no one to talk to about it. She couldn't tell Stiles obviously, she couldn't tell Scott because he would tell Stiles, and Allison was her only other friend, but she wasn't that close to her yet.

At the closet, Allison and Lydia were looking through the latter's shoes to try and find a pair for Hazel. Lydia had approved the black dress and stockings Hazel wore, and surprisingly even the rushed eyeshadow and mascara job Hazel had done, but apparently the white converse weren't going to cut it. Which didn't make much sense, since you had to use those special shoes at bowling alleys.

Allison had pulled out a multitude of shoes so far, but Lydia vetoed them all. Hazel didn't even bother to look; she layed on the bed and stared at the ceiling. She wasn't even sure the other girl's shoes would fit; Allison was an inch or so taller than Hazel.

"What about these ones?" Allison asked.

"Hazel doesn't like orange," Lydia said casually.

Without thinking, Hazel's head snapped up to look at Lydia. She remembered that? She remembered something so trivial about Hazel? Her heart tugged at the thought of what this night might have been like a year ago. Sometimes it was so easy to forget Lydia had been her best friend. But Lydia remembered things about her, and it was a punch in the gut.