The Exchange

Chapter 32- Hot Summer Nights

*NOTE: This chapter has mature content- this is a warning*
Otherwise hope you enjoy x

P.S. The song for this chapter is by Françoise Hardy and the lyrics are pure poetry
'Première rencontre'

I was left alone in my room
Dreaming of the one who'd come
And rescue me one day from my childhood

And with whom I'd go far, far away
If I had been asked to describe him
I most certainly would have been wrong
But I had already loved his smile

Before our first encounter
Before the concert begins
As the musicians accord in tune
A bit like the advancing sea

Kind of like a heartache

It was so when I first saw him
He stood out no more than any other
But I knew that it was him and no other

----

It was early evening when Sasha and Julien finally left the party, and both were much more tipsy than they had been when they first arrived. An orange moon embellished the sky which cast a soft glow to all things below and the trees appeared hazy as dusk descended. The setting sun glimmered in the far distance, like a smouldering ember that slowly fades.

The day had been wearying but Sasha was in good spirits. She'd pushed herself to do things that she thought she wasn't capable of. She'd reached out and grabbed what she wanted instead of being torn apart by her mind and emotions. Having your cake and eating it felt good. This confidence that seemed to be cascading out of her was startling but empowering. She felt as though she had the world at her fingertips.

There was only one thing that was bugging her slightly, and it was a worry that concerned her friends. After she had kissed Julien in front of everyone Cass had disappeared off the face of the earth and Polly had also started to act more distant.

Sasha knew that they might be mad at her for keeping everything hushed up but at the same time how were they to know it wasn't her first kiss with him? It was definitely probable that in their eyes she could have just kissed him right out of the blue! Not a very 'Sasha' thing to do, but still a possibilty.

Besides it didn't feel right for her to try to explain everything that had been happening. She was still confused about it all herself and wouldn't know where to begin if pressed for answers. She liked Julien, that much was for sure, the hard bit now was admitting to how much and how far she wanted things to go.

And although Cass and Polly had been her friends for a long time she was cautious about they would react. Since the beginning Sasha had always been viewed as the 'baby' of the group, the one without experience who listened to the others and kept to the shadows most of the time. However, her actions at the pool party meant she had stepped out of her 'place', and that could cause a problem.

But on the other hand it was only a simple kiss! Sure, Cass had been flinging herself at Julien (and normally Sasha would be happy to allow her friend 'to get the guy') but this was an entirely different situation. So was she really going to be that bitter? Just because Sasha had finally done something for herself, even if it was unexpected. If anything it was Cass who was stepping on peoples toes (although of course she was not to know it).

Something hit Sasha on the back of her head and snapping back to reality she swiveled around to see what the hell it was.

Julien stood behind her with a smirk on his face and a half empty bottle of Prosecco in his hand. Glancing down at the floor she noticed a golden bottle top that he had obviously just aimed and flung at her.