Course Of Action

CHAPTER 6: Bitterness

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B I T T E R N E S S

PoV: Wilma Morris...|

Rather than waiting around doing nothing, I decided to take some air whilst I could. When I would find Diana again, I would probably not get a chance to do so with everything she would drag me around to do.

I had to push by many as I searched for the big wooden front doors, apologising as I bumped into them despite my poor attempts not to. I noticed they were rather friendly despite my clumsiness, even the ones I hadn't exchanged a word with prior to that party. The alcohol truly did wonders to ease the atmosphere. Suddenly it was as if we all were best of friends, and had been for all those years we spent in class together. They all called my name as if a daily habit, having it roll off their tongues better than the presentation they held only a few hours ago that day.

I never found my way back to the large front door, and instead followed a breeze I felt come by my feet. I let it lead me over to a new room in the back with a door opening up to a more secluded area in the backyard. It stood wide open, and it had likely been left that way to act as additional ventilation. So much for the guards out front.

Already as I had entered the dark and deserted laundry room in which the exit was found I had felt a significant difference in the air, and it managed to draw a heavy sigh from my lungs. When I stepped out into the dark night on the singular step outside, I felt that the air had finally cooled down compared to earlier in the day. Having it hit my hot face I instantly felt relieved, the slight salty breeze from the sea doing wonders for my spinning head. The music was muffled down behind the many walls separating me from the core of the hive, giving my ears a "breather" as well.

It didn't take long before I noticed I wasn't the only one having escaped outside, voices echoing ever so slightly from somewhere close by. I scanned my surroundings and spotted some guys smoking a bit away behind some hedges which adorned the pathways of the backyard.

In the group I spotted Damian with Leslie clinging onto his shoulder like usual, both talking with some guys who I identified to be from our school. They didn't seem to have noticed me step out, and I watched as they shared a smoke. Or at least it seemed like they did, as Leslie grabbed the cigarette from Damian, blowing the smoke in his face. Damian only scrunched his nose at Leslie's attempt to annoy him, not diverting his attention away from the guy talking. Likely left without the reaction he desired, Leslie only chuckled and gave back the cigarette, once again engaging in the conversation they had.

Their personalities shone through rather well when together. Leslie was eccentric, opinionated and a bit fragmented in his focus. Damian was closer to the opposite. He wasn't seeking anything specific from any situation of circumstance, seemingly content with a small conversation here and there.

Damian had become rather quiet over the years, and most drastically by the beginning of sophomore year, where he all of a sudden took a step back. He didn't seem to want to remain in the social circle he had long been part of, and it wouldn't surprise me if it was because he got tired of it all. As we got older, the drama had gotten hotter; and combined with his failed relationship with Kitty, he likely found himself at the end of his searing road.

I could imagine it wasn't easy being the ex of Kitty Wrightford, judging from the many rumours that spread after their messy breakup. Heck, even I got to hear pieces of it, the very end of the gossip-train. So it wasn't a minor occurrence to say the least.