Love and Family | Port Orthos 4

chapter 36: harlow loves her boyfriend very much

chapter 36: harlow loves her boyfriend very much

~harlow~

       "Are you sure it will be fine for me to be here?" Emmett asks as he slowly drives down the road, trying to find a parking spot. The streets are packed with parked cars, so it's difficult trying to find a spot. Emmett and I will probably have to walk for a bit.

       "Of course," I say. "The more the merrier. That's what the host said. We're allowed to bring guests that don't go to our school, so why would it be weird for you to be at the party?"

       "Because this is a high school party and I'm not a high school student," Emmett says. 

       "You're, like, a year old than the seniors," I point out. "It's not like you're a middle aged man trying to crash a party." 

       "That's true." Emmett finally finds a spot to parallel park; it's a bit of a walk to the house where the party is being thrown, but it's better than nothing. Besides, neither Emmett nor I have the intention to drink at the party, so it's not like it will be a huge struggle for us to get back to his car.

       The house is already packed with teens, so I hold onto Emmett's hand, not wanting to lose him in the crowd. I first lead him to the kitchen to see what's there for snacks and drinks. A lot of alcohol options despite there being mostly underage teens here. Not surprising, though.

       There are a few soda options, thankfully, so I pour a glass for me and Emmett.

       "Harlow!" Kaylee says as she walks over to me with Freddie following her. She throws her arms around me in a hug. "I'm so glad you made it."

       "Me too," I say. "It took my dads a bit of convincing to let me come here, but they finally agreed in the end." Normally, Dad and Poppa don't mind me going to parties, especially if I go with someone. They trust that I'll make the right decisions but for some reason, Dad wasn't too keen on me going this time. I didn't want to go if even one of them wouldn't let me, but Poppa was able to convince Dad to let me go.

       "We definitely need the party after all the crazy shit that has been happening at school," Kaylee says. "But I'm glad that stupid list is done and finished with and talk about it has been dying down." Kaylee looks at Emmett, who she has never formally met. "You must be Harlow's boyfriend." She holds out her hand. "Hi, I'm Kaylee, Harlow's friend."

       Emmett shakes her hand. "I'm Emmett."

       "It's nice to finally meet you," Kaylee says. "Harlow talks about you, like, all the time."

       I nod in agreement. "It's true. I do." I don't get why some people get embarrassed when someone exposes them for talking about their significant other all the time. Of course I would talk about Emmett all the time. He's an amazing person. Why wouldn't I want to talk about him?

       Emmett, Kaylee, Freddie, and I hang out together for quite some time. Kaylee is right; we definitely need this party right now. It's great to just let loose, have fun, and be a teenager without a care in the world.

       And it's even more fun getting to spend it with Emmett. I'm glad Emmett was able to find the time to come with me. It hasn't been easy for him to get any free time, so I'll take anything. It does help that for his job, he works at his moms' motel, so it's easy for him to ask for time off.

       At one point, Emmett has to go to the washroom, so I tell him I'll wait for him in the kitchen while I snack on some food. As I'm doing so, Viktor walks up to me. "I'm surprised to see you here," I say. "I thought the entire school hated you."

       Viktor gives me a sarcastic smile before he glares at me. "The entire school doesn't hate me. Besides, some people did agree with the list."

       "Only boys agreed with it," I say. "I wonder why that is."

       "So you're telling me you weren't even the slightest bit flattered that you were high on the list?" Viktor asks.

       I sigh. "I keep having to say this. No, I'm not flattered. Why the hell would I be flattered that someone ranked me high on a list that was solely based off of girls' looks? It diminishes every other thing about is and it butchered a lot of girls' self-esteem. What don't you get about that?"

       "Is everything okay?" Emmett suddenly asks as he walks up beside me, gently placing his hand on my back.

       I smile at Emmett. "Yeah, everything's fine. Let's go dance."

       I start pulling Emmett towards the designated dance floor, but I stop when Viktor says, "This is your boyfriend? Wow, I kind of expected more from you."

       "What's that supposed to mean?" I ask.

       "Just leave it, Harlow," Emmett says. "It's fine. He can say what he wants." Emmett ends up leading me to the dance floor. It takes a lot for Emmett to get angry. I don't even remember the last time I've seen him angry, so it's no surprise that he isn't even annoyed by Viktor's comment.

       Seeing Viktor did sour my mood for a bit, but it soon fades the more time I spend dancing with Emmett. I love spending time with him and I love him.

       The party is still going strong around midnight, but that's when it's best for me to start heading home. I would like to stay longer, but my parents want me home no later than one in the morning. 

       I find Kaylee and Freddie to say goodbye to them before Emmett and I leave. We walk to his car and he drives us back to Port Orthos. It does get tiresome having to drive some distance to the high school and every single teen or school event, but I would still much rather live in the town than move closer to the school.

       Fern, Forest, and I did have the option to go to school in Port Orthos or to a private school in the city, and we all opted for the private school, especially since it's a great school for the arts.

       Emmett drops me off at my house just after twelve-thirty in the morning. I kiss Emmett before getting out of the car and heading inside my house. As I take off my shoes, I notice someone sleeping on the couch. Dad.

       I frown, wondering why Dad is sleeping on the couch. He ends up waking up because he's a light sleeper and I'm making a bit of noise, so he opens his eyes and looks at me. "Good, you're home," he says.

       "Before curfew, like I promised," I say. "Why are you sleeping on the couch?"

       "I was waiting for you to come home so I would know you got home safely," Dad says. "I fell asleep."

       "You're lying," I say. "You have pillows and a blanket, like you were prepared to fall asleep. Did you and Poppa get into a fight?"

       Dad sighs. "It's past midnight, Harlow. You should go to sleep."

       "You should too," I say. "In your own bed."

       "We just need our space right now."

       "Is it because I went to the party when you didn't want me to? You didn't have to say yes. I would have been fine staying home."

       "No, it's not because of that. I promise. It's just... It's nothing."

       "It's not nothing, otherwise you wouldn't be sleeping downstairs. You know, I once heard that you should never go to bed angry with your partner. You should talk things out with Poppa. Properly."

       Dad hesitates before he gets up and walks over to me. "You know, I'm the parent here. You not supposed to be the one giving me advice." He gives me a side hug. "But thank you. That's what I needed to hear." Dad heads upstairs and hopefully, he is able to talk things out with Poppa.

       Us kids don't really see or hear them argue, so it's weird to know they're having a fight. At least their relationship is healthy enough that they're always able to talk things out. It's no wonder my relationship with Emmett is just as strong. I have amazing parents to look up to.

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i don't like when fawn and marius fight :(