Serenity

five

a/n: towards the end, this chapter will mostly consist of dialogue. but I do hope you enjoy! vote and comment your thoughts whenever you're done reading, x

As I close the front door behind me, I can hear sounds of Kathleen's loud chatter coming from the kitchen. I curiously follow the noise, taking in the view of Kathleen leaning against the counter and my mother at the stove, dropping strings of raw fettuccine into a saucepan of boiling water.

Unlike my sister and I, my mother has the lightest brown hair which makes her look so elegant, whether it is in a low bun or loose waves. Her eyes are the same shade as her locks, making her all the more stunning. She always wears pearls; a pearl necklace around her neck and a single pearl on each earlobe. My mother is beautiful, and even the soft wrinkles along the corners of her eyes cannot defy that.

"What are you fussing about?" I ask Kathleen and she frowns.

"I got a C on my project. A C!" She lifts up a paper that had the word Pluto scribbled at the top in her handwriting, and just beside it was a big red bold C. "Can you believe this?"

"Actually, I can. I did tell you that Pluto is no longer a planet," I laugh and surprisingly enough, my mother laughs along with me.

"This is not funny!" She says but my mother and I continue laughing. Kathleen leaves the kitchen and her small murmurs under her breath are audible as she stomps up the stairs.

"Oh, that poor girl. She is always getting mad at everything so easily," My mother jokes as she pulls a drainer out of the cabinet above her. I laugh at how true the statement is. "Where were you, Cora? Your classes end at one, don't they?"

"Noon," I correct her. "And I went to the pizza parlor after class with Daisy. We left a little earlier than we had planned, so we just headed over to her house." I look down at my wristwatch; it is already nine thirty-two at night. This day went by faster than I had anticipated.

"So, I am assuming that you won't be joining Kathleen and I for this late dinner I'm making," She says, and I shake my head in response. "Daisy. How is she?"

"Well...she's Daisy," I say, earning a smile from her. "Her birthday is in two weeks, Mom. But you already knew that, right? She's having a birthday party."

"Really? A birthday party for a young woman who is turning twenty?"

"She wants it to be extravagant and formal," I use Daisy's voice to imitate her words from earlier today. I lightly scoff, "She wants me to dress up and bring a date."

"A date!" my mother claps her hands together, "Martha Gannon's son, Evan, would be perfect for you!"

If I'm being forced to bring a date, I would rather bring someone I already know, I think to myself, someone like Harry.

"I'll talk to Martha to set up a day for you two to meet each other," my mother says as she returns her attention to the saucepan in front her and pours Alfredo sauce onto the cooked pasta.

My mother is a sweetheart, but I hated how she always wanted to set me up with people I didn't know. Shower, I think, I need a shower. I never wanted to be rude to my mother, but I was quite done with this conversation. So, I leave the kitchen, walk up the stairs, and make my way to the bathroom.

I have always had a bad habit of bringing my cellphone into the bathroom with me, and it is definitely a habit that I know I won't ever break. I send a few quick replies to Daisy as I shut the bathroom door behind me with my foot. I then set my phone onto the sink, grab my light blue towel that is hanging on a hook on the wall, throw it on top of the toilet seat, and shed off today's clothing.