𝐆𝐀𝐋𝐖𝐀𝐘 𝐆𝐈𝐑𝐋 ⎼⎼ 𝐫𝐞𝐠𝐮𝐥𝐮𝐬 𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐤

i. knock knock

The sandy-haired girl walked slowly down the beach, holding her pink plastic sandals in one hand and holding up her long white dress in the other. The day was lovely already, even though it had just started. The sun had risen leaving behind a few pinkish streaks in the sky, and the water was just starting to ripple. The mushy sand felt soft beneath her feet, and she took a step back to look out into the horizon.

The sun kissed her face with warmth. The girl closed her eyes and let the warmth consume her entirely, making every part of her body glow. She never wanted it to end. She then tossed her sandals behind her, and letting her dress fall. She then opened her eyes, walking closer and closer until the water hit her toes. The girl let out a small gasp at how cold it was. She then waded a bit further until her shins were soaked.

"Miss Walsh!" An Irish accent shrieked. "Get out of that freezing water and help me get my groceries!" The Walsh girl turned to see one of her neighbors, Misses O'Connor, standing with her hands on her hip by the O'Connor cottage. The houses were lined up a few yards by the water, all in a neat row. There were latter fences and trees blocking the few from each house, where flowers bloomed on all of the fences.

"I'm coming, Misses O'Connor! Let me get my sandals on!" The Walsh girl yelled back. She then picked up the soaking part of the dress and wrung it out while sliding on the pink sandals. She then swept her hair over on her shoulder and ran over to her waiting neighbor. Misses O'Connor was a devil of a woman, with curly gray hair and old fuzzy sweaters even in the July heat. The girl picked up several plastic bags with the logo 'Dylan's' on it. Dylan's Supermarket was the only place near the cottages that actually sold things, so naturally everyone flocked there. Even the girl took small trips downtown just to walk around inside Dylan's and help people find groceries. Along with Dylan's, there was an old movie theater, a sixties diner, the farmer's market, and schoolhouse, along with some smaller shops.

It wasn't much, but it was home. And that's all that mattered to the Walsh girl. She trudged into the O'Connor cottage with tons of bags in her hands and set them down on the dining room table. She bid her goodbyes to Misses O'Connor and walked over to her own baby blue cottage a few houses down. The other houses on the line were all varying shades of white and gray, but the Walsh cottage was pure color. The house had multicolored flowers in every window and on every flower bed. The curtains were long and flowy with patterns of white lace, while the inside had a room a different color. The living room was canary yellow, the main bedroom sage green, the guest bedroom was off white, the bathroom was beige, and the kitchen was sky blue. The girl wanted to make it cozy, like the house she didn't have growing up.

The girl set her sandals by the door and walked towards the living room and laid down on the couch. The windows were tossed open and the breeze made the curtains dance. The girl breathed in, and laid on her side while looking through the large windows. She was alone, but she had everything she could ever need with her. As she was about to drift off to sleep, she heard the rumble of a car coming down the dirt road. Her brows furrowed. Cars never usually came around, unless they were the neighbors on the line. Which most of them were old and never went out. She got up, walking to her door, and opening it.

Outside was a fancy red car, driving slowly with the top up. The girl watched the car slow down to the house next to her, watching it turn into the driveway of the white cottage next to her. The cottage had been empty since she moved in, so naturally she was curious. The car stopped out of view, so the girl walked past the latter fence and peeked over the side, trying not to let them see her. A tall man stepped out of the car. He had a wide smile and messy black hair. He wore an odd pair of zebra print shorts and a red button up t-shirt. Then a woman stepped out. She had to be the most beautiful woman the girl had ever seen. She had long brown hair and a gorgeous long dress that was a baby pink.