Damage Control

Sisters, Am I Right?

I huffed in frustration as I tossed another shirt on my floor which was now littered with bundles of clothes. Easton was due to pick me in up twenty minutes, and I wasn't anywhere near being ready. It was partly my fault for taking a four hour nap after school and sleeping through my alarm, but what was more betraying was the fact that neither Avery, Brandon, or my mother came to check up on me in the time that I was passed out from sleep. 

What if I had died?!

Glancing up at the clock perched on my pastel walls, I ran a hand through my hair as I felt my panic heighten as the clock ticked. I don't know why it felt like a complex mission to pick out an outfit all of a sudden, but I knew that I needed to choose one soon, and I needed to do it fast. I could hear footsteps slowing to a stop in front of my bedroom door, and before I could yell for Brandon to go away, the door pushed open, revealing a broody Avery. 

"I've heard you sighing and huffing for the past ten minutes. It's distracting my yoga time, what gives?" She irritably asked as she placed her hands on her hips and cocked her head to the side. Her raven hair was tied in a tight bun on the top of her head and she was dressed in a pair of spandex and a tank top. 

Since when did she do yoga?

"I've been trying to piece together an outfit and nothing is matching." I complained as I waved to the mounds of clothes piled on the floor. I watched as Avery regarded my messy room with a disgusted expression before she turned back to face me.

"What's the occasion?" She asked with a raised eyebrow as I pouted my lips and scratched the top of my head.

How exactly do I explain this?

I'm going on a fake date with my annoying neighbor who I can't stand, yet still made a deal with him so now I'm stuck going on a double date?

Nope, definitely not that description. 

"Easton and I are going to accompany Noah and Danielle on their first date." I said cooly, hoping that Avery didn't pick up on my nervous tone. I didn't want anyone thinking anything of Easton and I going on a date with Noah and Danielle. It was purely for business purposes and I didn't want anyone twisting that around. 

I wouldn't be caught dead going on a date with Easton.

Did it look like I wanted to be on the hit list of every female in my school?

"Accompany huh? Wait here one second, I think I might have something." Avery said with a small smirk as she held up a finger and jogged out of my room. It was obvious she wasn't buying the "accompany" excuse, but if she wasn't asking questions, I wasn't going to complain. 

I could hear her rummaging through her room before letting out a small 'aha' and heading back into my room.Taking a seat on the foot of my bed, I watched as Avery unfolded what appeared to be a black denim skirt along with long sleeve top. The tags were still attached on clothes which meant that Avery must've never gotten around to wearing them. Her style had changed so drastically these past years, and it seemed that the only colors she liked to wear now were on the darker spectrum of the color wheel. It was as if she was allergic to any color brighter than grey. 

I watched as she wore a small smile on her face as she held up the clothes and admiringly looked at them before turning to me, "Here. Try these." She said as she tossed the clothes onto my lap. I flashed her a grateful smile before grabbing the clothes and rushing into the bathroom to change. Pulling the shirt over my head, I glanced in the mirror to gauge the full outfit as I smiled to myself. The skirt fit like a glove and the baby blue top complimented the black bottoms flawlessly. 

It was perfect.

And I owed it all to Avery. 

Quickly tying back the front two strands of my hair, I applied concealer to my under eyes, and topped off my makeup with mascara and lip tint before opening the door to the bathroom and heading back to my bedroom where Avery sat on the floor stretching. 

Giving her a small twirl, I held my hands up in question, "So, what do you think?" I asked as she  scanned my outfit. A smile enveloped her face as she nodded her head, "You look amazing." She complimented as she got up from where she was warming up, and walked over to me. Fixing a stray strand of my hair, she stepped back and flashed me a smile once more. 

It felt like ages since Avery and I had properly had a conversation without her stomping away or blasting her music to block out the sound of mine or Brandon's voices. Something had changed in her when our family split, and it was like a flip had switched within her. The old, optimistic Avery was replaced by a confused and frustrated individual. 

There were times where I could still see remnants of that girl, and this was one of those times. 

And boy did I cherish these moments like hell.  

Feeling an abundance of emotion wash over me, I pulled Avery close to me and tightly hugged her, "Thank you." I whispered into her ear. I could feel her arms fall limp at my side before she slowly wrapped her arms around my waist and returned my embrace. Pulling back, I flashed her one more smile, and watched with amusement as she stuck her tongue out at me before pushing me back.

"Ew, we can never have another moment like that again or I'm going to tell mom you're going on a date with Easton. And we both know how that will turn out for you." She jokingly threatened as my eyes widened and I shook my head at her devilish antics.

My mother would never let live another day of peace unless I'd tell her exactly what happened on our fake date.

And then she'd pester me to go on another one with him. 

It was simply something that was to never be spoken of when she was within a five foot range. 

"You wouldn't dare." I replied as I squinted my eyes as an attempt to seem threatening. 

Walking backwards out the door, I watched as she smirked at me, "Watch me."

Sisters, am I right?

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Hey guys!

A shorter update for today, but no worries, I plan on getting the next update out soon!

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and New Years!

Thank you all for being such amazing supporters, I wouldn't be doing what I love without you all <3