CountryCore Series: Sweet Lavender (WLW)

Would You Like To Dance?

Aster finished shoving the ballroom's lounger forward so that it sat just beneath the terrace windows and stood up straight. She placed her hands on her hips and spun around with a triumphant nod. None of this would have been possible without Nora and Lyle's help. Despite it being his day off, her brother had brought his family up to the Peterson Estate to aid in her getting at least one more room immaculate by the end of the day. Although they'd been forced to leave at around three due to a previous engagement with one of Nora's aunts, they had spent the bulk of their day with Aster. Luckily, there wasn't much left for her to do once they left and she ran her gaze over the dance hall.

It had always boggled her mind that her brother's best friend was so well off that her family had an entire hall dedicated to their love of music and dance, but now she was so very thankful for it. Aster looked at the large window that lined the exterior of the two long walls of the room and spotted a sparrow on its landing. She used to crawl out there when she was younger and play her fiddle, which was something she saw in her near future. In fact, while she waited for Cricket to return from her day-long trip in town, she might just grab her violin and get to work on her orchestral piece.

Aster glanced to her left and was met by a wall of mirrors, leading her to go and stand in front of it. Aside from a small shelving unit in the far right corner, there was nothing aside from the opposing windowed wall's reflection and herself. She ran her eyes over her face and felt her eyebrows rising up her forehead. When had she grown so thin? Aster lifted her arms about waist high and noticed her wrist notches stuck out more than ever and sighed. Must be all the stress in New York. She rationalized as she let her arms drop and looked up into the wall of mirrors again. Aster made her way over and reached up to her head.

Taking her hair down, she chuckled as it puffed, then flopped down along her shoulders. As a child, taming her curls was no easy feat. As an adult, she cared less about it. In all honesty, she wished she'd come to terms with her kinky curls earlier in life. Then maybe she could have embraced them like she did now and would find the same pride. Growing up, however, it was a sore spot as most of her peers had no boundaries. They would pull on her curls just to see them bounce, sometimes even doing the sound effects with their mouths. It was irritating. Frustrating. Regardless, she now stood with even longer hair and no incentive to tame it as she had back then. Nowadays, she let it be and loved the natural way it bounced or swayed when she moved even in the slightest.

Aster nodded at herself and turned back around toward the windowed wall, walking over to it once more. What a view... Aster always marveled, even as a small child, at the lovely sight the lavender fields held. They were rather awe inspiring and one of the main things she missed about Blanco when gone. It wasn't as if Cricket's family were the only lavender cultivators in her hometown, but they were definitely the biggest. All she could see as far as the eye stretched was the Peterson's property, which bore rolled hills of lavender casting their glorious scents all around her. The smell filled the house, the outside patio, the detached garage... It was everywhere.

Aster smiled and began to hum as she strolled along the interior of the glass wall. She eventually arrived at the lounger at the end of the room where a Tuscan style window lay just above it and knelt down on the only piece of furniture in the dance studio. Resting her crossed arms along its sill and her chin on them, she ran her gaze along the fields at the back of the estate. How could anything ever compare to its beauty? Aster felt her eyelids growing heavy and yawned, realizing just how little sleep she'd gotten the night prior with all her pondering.

Giving herself up to deep thinking until well after two in the morning, she'd considered just how she might get Cricket to open up more. Her best option was precisely what she proposed to Nora. She wanted to get Cricket dancing again. If Aster could get her moving, swaying majestically like she did in their youth, perhaps she might bring out the happiness she used to bear so regularly. Maybe she could open up her eyes to the possibility that life was not over and that she could and would find joy in many things. If it was the last thing she did, Aster would make sure Cricket knew not only how important her happiness was to everyone and herself, but that she deserved the jovial times she'd fought against since Claire did what she did.