Stella's POV
I'm sure normal people could probably look at what we were doing for fun and think we were actually insane. What group of friends just plays a game where the singular goal was to impress one of the people in the group. However, to our specific friend group it made so much sense. The friend group revolved around Ava. All of us, Peter and Oli included, would do absolutely anything for Ava. I don't think it even could've worked any other way because God knows Oli wouldn't go out of his way to build a waffle tower for me. Ava was the core, Ava was the sun. Ava filled us all with light and if we didn't revolve around Ava, I'm pretty sure we all would've fallen apart. Even Peter got into it, filling up an entire sand bucket up with Swedish Fish, her favorite candy. Just to be very clear, Swedish Fish is her favorite candy. Anyway, the bucket full of her favorite candy Swedish Fish was for nothing pretty much, because when I was in Ava's room the two of us fully cheated and planned out the pyramid together.
"Why's your hair wet?" Louis asked me, when I sat next to him on the couch at approximately 6:55, when the pyramid was supposed to drop at 7.
"I took a shower." I lied.
"Sounds like a lie, I didn't hear you upstairs." He said.
"Yeah, there's a bathroom downstairs." I shrugged.
"You are the worst liar of all time, devil girl." He laughed, before smacking me with a pillow.
"HEAR YE HEAR YE." Ava yelled, marching into the room. God I loved Ava. She was the most ridiculous, most full of life person I had ever met. Ever since I was 6 years old, Ava was all I ever wanted to be. It seemed like she knew exactly who she was and what she was doing and she never felt like she had to squash herself down so she wouldn't be seen or heard. She wanted to be seen and heard and make people smile and light up every room she walked into, while I mostly just wanted to be invisible. Even now that I had everything I needed, a brother that loved me, more money than I knew what to do with, a bright future, I still found myself wanting to be Ava when I grow up.
"I HAVE COME TO ANNOUNCE THE PYRAMID FOR THE DAY! BUT FIRST! You may present to me your sacrifices." Ava had this way of making everyone go along with her ridiculousness too. Or maybe it was just the friend group I had, but we just went along with her nonsense like it was no big deal. Peter stood up and knelt before her, holding up his plastic bucket of Swedish Fish like an offering from a peasant to a king.
"I present to thee thy favorite candy, Swedish Fish." Peter announced. God I loved Peter too. Ava probably didn't even know the difference between "thee" and "thy" but she played the role of the dignified royal exceptionally. She was actually a really good actor, she was the lead in like all the school plays. Not to brag or anything.
"I am honored by your sacrifice." Ava told Peter, curtsying before taking the bucket from him. Then she smiled gleefully like a child and took a fish from the bucket and popped it in her mouth.
"I love Swedish Fish." She grinned. "It's my favorite candy."
"We know." Peter and I said at the same time, still traumatized by the epic Ava meltdown of Friendship Group day one. Peter flopped down next to me on the couch and pecked a kiss on my cheek.
"NEXT!" Ava yelled. Oli stood up then and went into the kitchen, where a giant tower of what looked to be Eggo Waffles glued together with Nutella stood on a platter. He carefully brought it over and offered it to King Ava.
"Eggo Waffles?" She asked with her eyebrows raised. "Take it away."
"I'm so sorry my lord, there wasn't enough time for me to harvest the wheat for..." Oli responded.
