Secrecy (Hosie)

Part 13: Eruption

It's Wednesday afternoon, and Hope hasn't been back to the Salvatore School since the weekend, when she fought the Shunka and revealed her werewolf side to the students at the school. They were very accepting of it, though. Hope is actually kind of relieved that she doesn't have to hide as much. The students still don't know about her blood being vampiric, that she's a Mikaelson, the Original Tribrid, but they do have a new piece of her identity. One less thing for her to keep a secret.

Hope has spent the last couple of afternoons after practice with Maya and Ethan. She felt bad about spending all of her time away from them. She did get to call, video-call, and text Josie all the time, though. They planned for Hope to cook dinner tonight for the two of them, Alaric agreed to drop Josie off, and Hope would bring her back before curfew.

That's something else that's new, Josie told her father that she and Hope were dating, with Hope's go-ahead, of course. Surprisingly, he was very accepting of the relationship. He trusts Hope, and he's known her for years. He's seen her stick up for his daughter before.

Alaric did call Hope after hearing about the relationship from his daughter, letting her know that he would support them, but he didn't want his daughter to get hurt by the secrets they were keeping. Hope was very understanding of his reservations. She doesn't want to do anything to hurt Josie either. That's why she's keeping everything a secret, she wants to protect everyone. She wanted to protect Josie before she even knew her.

Hope didn't have football practice today, so she was able to go home and take her time preparing for the evening. She made pasta, tossed salad, and beignets for dessert. She wore a red, long sleeve, mock-neck shirt, black pants, platform heels. gold earrings, various gold rings on her fingers. She had her hair curled, a few strands pulled back on one side. She and Josie decided not to dress too fancy, since they were staying in for dinner.

She was just finishing up setting the table, lighting a few candles along the way, when her doorbell rings. Luckily, nobody in her family is visiting right now, so she and Josie can actually be alone together for the evening.

She opens the door to reveal her girlfriend smiling widely. Hope takes a moment to take in the sight of her, wearing a light pink cropped top paired nicely with a skirt and minimalistic earrings. "You look beautiful." It's all Hope can manage to say to the girl in front of her.

"Thank you, you clean up nicely too." Josie teases. Hope opens the door wider, allowing Josie to come in. She gives Dr. Saltzman a wave, trying to be polite, before shutting the door behind them. As soon as the door is shut, Josie brings Hope into a quick kiss, "I missed you." The smile on her face remains.

"Well, I'm all yours for the rest of the evening, no distractions." She guides Josie toward the dining room.

Josie's jaw drops when she sees the beautiful display of candles and food. Everything looks so nice. "Hope, you didn't have to do all of this." She isn't complaining, she just doesn't want Hope to think she has to be so extravagant to please her. A grilled cheese is enough to suffice her.

"I know, but I wanted to. You deserve to have a night crafted just for you," Hope wants Josie to know that she is the focus tonight.

Josie blushes as Hope pulls out a chair for her, allowing her to take her place at the table. Hope sits across from her, "So do you do this for all of your dates?" Josie continues to soak up every little detail of the setup.

"I've never brought a date home." Hope says it like it's no big deal, but Josie's eyes widen a little bit, alarming Hope, "What's wrong? You don't drink wine? I can grab something-" Hope is getting up from her seat when Josie rests her hand on top of her's.

"No the wine is great Hope, I just— I don't know, it's a big deal, me being the first date that you've invited into your home." Hope is relieved that Josie isn't dissatisfied by anything.