she's leaving home 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐁𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐋𝐄𝐒 [𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐭𝐰𝐨]

IX

the cavern was packed that night. the music was loud and the atmosphere was intoxicating. it was the most crowded place molly had ever been. there were people everywhere she looked, laughing, drinking, having fun. she hated that she was alone, missing the presence of anyone else in the crowd—even george, who she somehow managed to avoid when she returned to his house that night. she didn't understand why he didn't come looking for her.

her thoughts drifted back to only a few hours earlier when she arrived home from john's apartment to george's house.

as she walked in the door, she noticed how quiet it was in the house, almost silent. molly slipped her shoes off and walked further inside.
when she heard footsteps, she froze, hoping it was just someone walking outside to take a smoke break and not george coming to greet her. molly let out a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding when she saw george's mother, louise, a cigarette between his fingers.

"hello, molly!" the woman smiled widely, relief flowing through molly at this.

"where's george?" she asked his mother.

"he went out with some friends of his. probably won't be back until late."

"oh, thank you, louise. i'll just be up there, then." she pointed towards the stairs. his mother nodded and left the room, closing the door behind her. molly walked slowly up the staircase, her heartbeat picking up. she tried her best to ignore the strange sensation in her stomach as she opened the bedroom door, seeing george's bed empty. she wondered who he had been out with.

maybe he had gone to the cavern early for practice.

molly sat on the bed, wishing george had made the bed before he left that morning. she thought about the night before, wondering if he had given it any thought himself. she regretted not kissing him more but didn't want to ignore her feelings or discomfort. she felt as though she made a complete fool of herself. but with how sweet george was, she knew he understood.

she pondered a bit on what john had said to her. maybe going to the cavern would help get her mind off her and george's tense situation.

she decided she needed to speak to george immediately.

*

she pushed open the heavy, wooden doors leading into the room where the band was performing, looking around for george's familiar, brunette hair. finally, she spotted him in the corner, standing near the bottom of the stage with some other boys in the bands also performing. molly walked up to them, trying hard not to look too nervous.

george seemed slightly annoyed that she interrupted their conversation, telling the boys he was speaking to he'd be right back. molly didn't want to seem rude, so she kept her gaze lowered, fiddling with the hem of her sweater. george sighed heavily when he finished his sentence to his friends, giving molly a quick glance. she was relieved that he didn't scowl at her as she expected.

george took a small step closer to molly and whispered to her under his breath. "what do you need, molls?" he asked lowly. she blushed slightly, unsure how to respond.

"um... nothing..." molly mumbled. she glanced away, biting her lip nervously.

george sighed again, rolling his eyes. "just answer me, molls." he snapped at her harshly. molly flinched back, surprised by the anger radiating off of his body. "if you're going to just ignore me, you can leave," he added.