All Roses Have Thorns

Sierra XII

She had no idea what was so special about the place, but the two were ecstatic and immediately ordered before disappearing to go find tables. She wasn't quite sure what their relationship was. The two seemed quite close. Perhaps they were soulmates, so he wanted to make sure she had good relationships? Nah. It's none of her business.

The menu was kind of large, so she let the others order first. Should she get a sandwich? A soup? A salad? Who was she kidding, she didn't like salad. And what should she drink? Soda? Tea? Smoothie? She held a hand to her chin in thought.

She ended up ordering a soup... and a cookie.

Sierra walked to the table area to see that the group had split into two groups, each occupying a booth. Reese, Safiya, and Maggie were sitting at a booth with an open spot next to next to Maggie. The girls waved Sierra over.

She looked over at the other booth. It was clearly meant to hold only four people, but they had managed to squish in five. Ryan and Matt were sitting next to each other. Zach was all the way on the inside, sitting sideways and leaning his back against the wall instead of the bench. Erin was sitting across his lap, leaning her arms on the table and talking to the others. Jake was sitting on her left side. None of them seemed phased by Erin's position.

The argument for the two being soulmates seemed to be getting more and more prominent in her mind. Sierra wasn't moving although she knew she should. There was something... captivating about the way Erin was smiling, a light blush over her pale freckles. She noticed Sierra's staring and looked up. Something changed in her eyes as the two made eye contact, but nonetheless, Sierra didn't have enough time to pinpoint it as it was over just as quickly as it happened.

Finally, her legs started to move and she sat down next to Maggie. Her mind was still abuzz with conspiracy theories regarding Zach and Erin. Why did she care so much? She wasn't sure.

Maggie watched her with wary eyes. "What took your feet so long? Got stuck in the sunlight, little troll?"

Shaking herself out of her thoughts, Sierra turned toward her friend. "I'm neither little, nor a troll."

"Right, right. That sounds exactly like something a little troll would say."

Sierra just sighed.