My Golden Life

Chapter 46

I made it out of the school grounds and walked down the steps of the hill leading towards the beach. It was still pretty warm outside, so the breeze from the sea didn't bother me that much, and with it being the end of the day, the sun was starting to set. I strolled along the shore in search of Artie, and sure enough, just as I had figured, I found him in his usual spot sitting against a boulder, staring out onto the horizon. I headed over to him, but he was so in his thoughts that he didn't even see me approaching.

"Mind if I join you?" I asked. 

He turned his head to look at me and nodded.

I perched down next to him and looked out onto the sea. The warm colours of the sunset were truly breathtaking, it spread across the sky like a soft blanket, making me feel all cosy inside. It was just as if I was back home, sitting on a hill near my house and taking in the beauty that had been painted in front of me.

"You want to talk about what happened?" I said. "I will understand if you don't want to."

He looked down and sighed, drawing swirls in the sand with his finger. "I should have expected it; you even warned me, and I didn't listen."

"Well, at least you tried, huh," I said.

"I guess. Maybe next year I will get lucky. Got to keep trying, right?"

I patted him on the shoulder. I honestly didn't see any sign of Gwen ever changing her mind, but I kept that thought to myself so that I didn't upset Artie even more.

"Lancelot and Gwen were right," he uttered. "I'm just a sad, low life dork."

"No, you're not!" I cried." "Don't let them or anyone else put you down Arthur, you're amazing."

"I don't think I am, but I appreciate your kinds words, Katie. It means a lot."

He leaned his head back and groaned, closing his eyes for a short moment before looking at me. "You didn't have to go after me, you know. You could have just gone back to your dorm."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "And leave you on your own to sulk and be miserable? No way! I wasn't going to do that."

"I don't get why you've been so nice to me," he said. "With you being new here, I thought you would have followed the crowd and joined in with being unkind to me like everyone else."

"I'm not like everyone else," I stated. I then looked up at the sky, feeling the wind against my face. "More than you realise."

"How do you mean?" he questioned.

I quickly stopped myself from blurting out what I was going to say. I didn't want Artie to find out about who I was. Not yet, anyway.

"Let's just say that I know what it's like to feel mistreated and uncared for. But hey, we have each other, and that makes me happy." I laughed and nudged him with my elbow, making him laugh as well.

"Well, I'm glad that I have you as a best friend, Katie."

"Me too," I said.

The two of us looked down, and I noticed my hand were resting on top of Artie's. We gazed at each other and smiled. It was then that strange feeling in my stomach started to brew up again, try as I might it wouldn't go away. I felt my cheeks getting warmer, and I could see that Artie's face was getting redder. 

We quickly snapped out of our gaze, moving our hands away from each other and nervously looking around at our surroundings. I took a couple of deep breaths and was able to look at Artie again with a steady and calmer look on my face.

"So," I began. "What are you going to do now? Is there anyone else you could ask to the Winter Ball?"

He shook his head. "I doubt anyone will want to go with me. I may as well not go and just stay in my room."

"Oh no, there's no way that I'm going to allow you not to go," I uttered. "You can join the girls and me. We're all going together."

"I don't know." He stuttered.

"Please, Artie," I begged, sadly pouting my face. "This will be my first Winter ball, and I want you there with me. I hate the thought of you being on your own while I'm having fun."

He groaned and scratched the back of his neck, "You're not going to let this go are you?"

"Nope. Only if you say you will come."

He went silent for a moment and then responded. "Fine, I come. Just for you."

I squealed and quickly embraced him. "Thank you! Oh, I can't wait! Come on, you're coming with me."

I got up and pulled Artie to his feet. "Where are we going?" he asked.

"To Isabel's dorm room. She, Merida, Lucy and I are helping each other with our dresses. I will tell them you're joining us for the Ball, they will be more than happy for you to come with us."

With that, I pulled him by the hand along the beach and towards the dorm village. Now that Artie was going to be going, I was feeling super ecstatic. It was going to be my first ever school party, and the fact that I was going with my friends filled me with great joy. It was surely going to be a night I wouldn't forget.