⨈𝖎𝖑𝖉 ₲𝖎𝖗𝖑𝖘

Chapter Three

Harper sprinted all the way to the lake, and leaped into the icy water; the sun was still up, though it only provided feeble warmth. She crossed the water quickly, and by the time she had reached the other side she was shivering.

Harper picked up a towel from the pile of bags, and dried off the water. She then proceeded to throw on her hoodie, sweatpants, and Vans. The silvery blue haired girl sprinted through the woods, her shoes pounding the leaves that littered the ground, her bag hitting against her back.

After a few minutes, she reached the place where they had dropped their bikes. Harper reached for her bike, but before she could ride away, the two other girls called to her.

"Harper!" Lea yelled.

"Wait! I'm sorry!" Ilise called.

Harper hesitated.

"I shouldn't have pushed you. I understand if you want to run. But I don't want you to feel pressured. We can help you, if you would just tell us what's wrong." Ilise continued.

"You can tell us anything." Lea added.

Like Mom? Like the reason I never have you over at my house but we go to both of your houses? Like how I love both of you, but you love each other? No!

"No!" Harper yelled. She swung her leg over her bike, put her feet on the pedals, and soon disappeared into the distance.

~time skip brought to you by gay froggos~

Harper's muscles screamed in protest as she pedaled over the last hill. She let her bike crash to the ground outside her house, and walked around to the back where her window was. She had only realized too late that she would get home while her mom was still awake, so she decided to sneak in through her window.

Harper pushed her window open and hoisted herself through the opening. She glanced around her room to make sure everything was the same as she left it. The fake ivy still covered the walls, and the bed was still a disaster.

Good, I'm safe, she thought as she locked her door. Harper lay down, closed her eyes, and soon sleep's wings engulfed her.

"Damn." Lea said.

They were back in the tree house, and the sky had gone dark.

"Do you think she'll come back?" Ilise asked.

"She's probably home already." Lea said.

"You're right." Ilise said, laying down with her head on Lea's lap. A faint blush dusted the faces of both girls.

"So what are we going to do now that Harper is gone?" Lea asked.

"Music?" Ilise suggested.

"YES!" Lea exclaimed. "But my playlist, okay?"

"Yeah, that's fine."

Lea grabbed out her phone and clicked on Spotify. I thought I would never get to use this playlist, she thought as she clicked on a playlist titled '<3'. She scrolled through, removing any songs from the queue. Maps Maroon 5, Oxygen Beach Bunny, Sunroof Nicky Youre and dazy, fall in love with a girl Cavetown and beabadoobee, Suneater Leanna Firestone, All of Me John Legend, Girls like you Maroon 5 and Cardi B, Faded Alan Walker, Wolves Selena Gomez, Shower Becky G, Line without a hook Ricky Mongomery, I Love U Loving Caliber, Diamonds Rihanna, Halo Beyonce, Dandelions Ruth B, A thousand years Christina Perri, Photograph Ed Sheeran, Follow you Imagine Dragons, frog Cavetown, and October Passed Me By girl in red.

With each song that played, the mood increased. They were lying on the ground, looking at the stars, curled up next to each other. The cool summer air carried the scent of cedar and vanilla through the trees. The breeze kissed their faces as it floated through. The stars glittered like diamonds, shining bright in the sky, set so different from their black backdrop. The girls just lay there and breathed in each other's scent as they tried to memorize the moment.

~time skip brought to you by snow days~

SMACK! Ilise felt herself fill with rage as some dude's hand connected with her ass. She heard him start snickering, holding his head close with his friends. While the rest of the hallway missed it, Lea didn't.

"What was that?" She asked the boys innocently.

"Oh, I just brushed past her."

"Really? That was a loud smack." Lea said suspiciously.

"Dude, you actually smacked her ass! Bro that's sick! Did she realize?" one of his friends said.

"I thought you said you just 'brushed past'?"

"Well-"

"We should shut her up before she tells." A boy said as he lunged at her.

Lea sidestepped and stuck out her foot, effectively tripping him.

"Oh, how did you end up down there?" Lea asked.

Another one reached over to push her against the wall, but Lea punched him so hard that he fell. One guy went to get some distance from her, and she swept his legs out from under him. The first guy stood and attempted to push her back, and she kneed him in the balls. Soon all of them were on the ground, pleading for her to stop.

"Do you boys promise to be good and not tell?" Lea said. After a chorus of 'yes' and 'let us go', Lea stared each individual one down and said, "DO. NOT. MESS. WITH. MY. FRIENDS. GOT IT?" More yesses.

"Good. Enjoy your day boys. Next time I catch you, it'll be your last." Lea flipped her hair, grabbed Ilise's wrist, and walked away.

Once they had made some distance, Ilise turned to Lea. "Wow, you didn't even break a sweat this time!"

"Yeah. That was easy." Lea brushed the compliment off.

"But still, thanks!" Ilise said, her eyes the size of saucers.

"Yeah, anytime." Lea said, her cheeks tinted pink.