Butterfly Keeper // h.s. au

Chapter Seventeen

"Listen to me child," Courtney begins, her usual air authority in her voice.

"You're only a year and a half older than me." I point out under my breath.

"Shh! That's beside the point." She insists, gesturing with her hands to make a statement.

"Alright, so what is the point?" I ask, being a good sport and going along with her crazy antics.

"The point is that I'm throwing you a birthday party and it'll be small with just our friends because this is my duty as your mentor and best friend." She says proudly, and takes a smug bite from her blueberry bagel.

"What if I just want to hang out with you and Sarah for my birthday? Go to the movies or something?" I throw out there, hoping she'll catch on.

She shakes her head 'no' in tight movements while she swallows the bite she's just taken.

"You don't know what you want Lott's. That's why you have me and Sarah." She states.

I pick at the skin around my fingernails, the area being bloody and torn from how often I perform the action. Courtney is pushy yet accepting all at once, but this is one of those times where I feel like she isn't considering how I feel about the situation. I have been very weary of parties ever since the first one I was pressed into going to. And even if it's a small party, I'm not really one who's ever enjoyed them anyway. I get shy and awkward around big groups of people, something I've always wished I could change about myself.

"Alright, fine." I sigh in defeat after battling Courtney's puppy eyes she had been giving me from across the table. Courtney squeals in excitement and a few people at other tables in this small cafe look up at us. It would seem that Courtney has a thing for drawing people's attention in public.

"Is there anything you need me to do?" I ask with a small laugh at her excitement.

"Nope, leave it all to me. All you need to do is show up at Zayn's apartment at seven okay?" She instructs happily while folding her hands in front of her.

If the party goes bad at least I'll know that I've made her happy. She seems pretty excited and maybe that alone will make all of this worth it.

She finishes her bagel and then we each take our half finished coffees and head to the parking lot. She shivers when we step outside and pulls her beanie father over her ears. I pull my hands into my sweater holes, making it look like I have stubs for arms. Courtney rolls her eyes when she sees this and then joins me for one last hug before we go our separate ways.

When we pull apart she slightly winces and pats me on the shoulder. "You're a good sport to drive that thing around. It looks like your parents bought it straight from the pumpkin patch."

I laugh, now turning my attention to my brightly colored vehicle parked next to Courtney's sleek, black, mustang.

"Don't remind me." I say, pointing a finger gun to my temple. She attempts to laugh but her teeth only chatter instead.

"See you tonight. Maybe park a few blocks away." She jokes while climbing into her car.

"Ha-ha." I roll my eyes but wave at her one last time as I climb into my car as well. At least when I'm inside of it I can pretend it isn't orange.

I drive back to campus, deciding to use the rest of my Sunday to study for the variety of tests I have next week. Just the thought alone fills me with dread but this is what college is right? Studying, studying, studying.