꧁꧂
"𝙄'𝙢 𝙨𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙮," he says into my hair, "𝙄'𝙢 𝙨𝙤 𝙨𝙤 𝙨𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙮." The sound of his voice breaking causes the tears to finally fall.
"You came back," I sigh into his chest. He pulls away, holding my face in his hands, and my heart flutters...
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| Lily |
"Ugh! I'm so jealous!"
"You're joking, right?" I laugh.
"Absolutely not! I say curse you and your bosoms for being older than me!"
"I will gladly trade my years for yours Anne, maybe then you'll understand what a pain corsets are," scoffing, I turn towards the mirror for perhaps the millionth time and tediously straighten out my dress.
"Lily's right," Diana takes my side and walks up to me, handing me a flower crown to match her and Anne's, "I tried on my mother's once, it's not worth it." A chorus of giggles fills the room, accompanied by Cole shaking his head in disbelief.
"Well, now I feel left out," Anne groans.
"Don't," I reassure her, "Soon enough, both of you will be complaining right along with me."
"I don't doubt it."
"I can see it now," I start, and make my way over to Anne, draping a comforting arm around her, "Us at Queens, educating ourselves, becoming accomplished women, and Anne, swearing off corsets for the rest of her days.
"Ah, the future," she sighs next to me, "If there's anything I'm looking forward to as much as Queens, it's Lily and Gilbert's wedding!"
"Anne!!!" I screech, but she runs away from me, relentless in her taunt.
"The wife of a promising doctor! Young lovers ready to face the world!"
"But you forget Anne," Diana joins in, "Gilbert is already facing the world. And I'm sure Lily knows all about it!" I give up trying to stop them and plop myself down on the vanity in our room.
"If he starts studying now, do you think he'll leave school early?" I hear Diana ask from behind me, and catch her eye in the mirror. This is the question I've been avoiding asking myself since Gilbert first told me about his vocation. This is the question I'd rather not know the answer to.
"Oh... I hadn't thought about that," I lie effortlessly. Guilt rises up in my throat but then vanishes almost instantly. It's become easier and easier to lie the more often I do it, but for the moment, for tonight, it's better than the truth.
My friends start to murmur amongst themselves, which I don't pay any mind to. As narcissistic as it seems, I'm preoccupied with looking at myself in the mirror. However, it's not out of vainness for my own appearance, but out of how much I look like the person I despise the most. My mother.
I guess I should've expected this though, I am wearing her dress. And as I stand, letting the pink fabric fall around me softly, I can't help but wish that Gilbert were here, standing beside me.
