Bloodstained Shores

Part One: Invitations and Introductions

Olive's POV

I woke up at 6:15 on the dot, ready to get all the work I needed to do today done before realizing I graduated from Harvard yesterday with a master's degree. I plopped my head back on my fluffy pillow preparing myself to lie down for two and a half hours. After a while I got bored and chose to get up. I looked at myself in the mirror.

I had woody brown hair that went to my shoulders and metallic golden eyes. I had tan skin which was a result of living in California about four miles away from the beach. I took off my pajamas and put on a sports bra and leggings. After brushing my teeth and hair, I looked out the window and saw the same old nice houses across the street. My house was a standard two bedroom and one bathroom with a backyard.

I took my airpods, phone, and keys and walked outside to begin my morning run. It was a very nice day outside, with green grass, blue skies, and the occasional seagull perched on a fence. It was nice being free from college at last. I decided to skip the graduation party one of the kids from my history course was throwing.

My best friend, Amy, thinks I need to loosen up a little and go to one of the  parties, but I don't see the problem with focusing on my education. Of course, now that I've graduated, I don't have to worry about that for at least a week, but I still don't want to go simply for personal reasons.

As if thinking about Amy meant summoning her, I quickly received a text from her. She asked me-

Amy Hey Olive! My parents are out of town and they're letting me throw a party at our beach house. The party will be a few nights;  we have guest rooms prepared. It'll  be from the 15th to the 18th. My siblings will be there, but they won't bother us much. Hope you can come! <3

Sounds fun to me. I texted her back, agreeing to come. Oh, I forgot to mention, Amy is rich. Her family owns a well-known cell phone company. Her older sibling, Sophia, is going to own the company in a few years. According to Amy, Sophia wants to wait until she's 26 to inherit the company because she wants to enjoy at least a part of her youth. In the meantime, Sophia lives in their mansion and her parents will run the company until Sophia turns 26.

I know what you're thinking: wow, you're BFF's with a famous AND rich person? Awesome! Yeah, I'm actually not gonna argue with you there. Although, of course, wealth and fame aren't the main reasons I hang out with Amy. Now that I think about it, Amy is the reason I even slightly got out of my shell in the first place. We met in high school when I had terrible self esteem and the confidence of a mongoose.

Amy is a very outgoing person, who always shoots her shot but never bothers to aim. At the time we met, she wasn't very popular despite her money and fame. She was the energetic kid who never cared who was watching. If you used to sit behind the girl in your class who wore 34 rainbow friendship bracelets at a time with rainbow braces, bright pink glasses, and chestnut hair in braids, that might've been her.

I, on the other hand, was the tired video game-loving girl who almost never talked and had pretty stuck-in-the-middle grades. I didn't have any friends (only acquaintances) before I met Amy. I wore clothes sticking to very dark colors. She and I have been best friends ever since. Funny how that works out, right?

She got together with her boyfriend, Max, between high school and college. In all honesty, he's actually a pretty cool dude. Max is very chill and relaxed. I don't know much about him and we've never actually hung out just the two of us, just that I don't mind him. Compared to some other guys I've met, he's pretty nice and considerate.

***

I got home to my house soon enough and my dog who was still sleeping when I woke up, Dave, came running to the door. He immediately rolled over and looked up at me with his belly in the air. I bent down to scratch him, just like always. Aww. He's so cute.