The Wicked Existence of Lillian Lennox

5. Chapter Five - Desire

The week couldn't pass fast enough. Finally it was Friday night after dinner and I was in my room trying to figure out what I could wear for tomorrow. We were going to the beach... but it was October. A dress seemed to cold, but I wanted to look nice and not wear a hundred bulky layers either. I let out an exasperated sigh, feeling offended with my own wardrobe and its inadequate clothing selection. I hated how indecisive I was. As I flipped through different shirts and sweaters, there was a knock on my bedroom door, before Gran's head poked through.

    "Am I interrupting?" She asked, raising her eyebrows as she cast a glance at the hazardous pile of clothing on my bed.

    "No," I answered, too quick, stuffing things back into my closet hastily. "I was just looking for something," I put on my most innocent and nonchalant expression.

    "Something for your date tomorrow, you mean?" Gran eyes twinkled and a sly smile was on her lips.

    "It is not a date." I said firmly. "Definitely not." It wasn't, was it? The question struck once again. My internal dialog had already brought up this subject numerous times.

    "If you say so..." Gran trailed off, clearly thinking otherwise.

    "What kind of 21 year old wants to take a high schooler on a date?" My voice was incredulous. Sure, it had crossed my mind. But I was going into this with zero expectations. No expectations, meant no disappointment, after all.

    "What kind of young man asks a beautiful and intelligent girl to go on a road trip, alone, to a romantic place like the beach, and doesn't intend for it to be a date? Sound's like a date to me," Gran's voice continued as she went into my bathroom, hanging new towels and taking out the old ones. I rolled my eyes at her cliche description.

    "It's not like that," I said dismissively.

    "Mhmm, if you say so," Gran said clearly not believing me, and then she was out the door. And I was left alone with my insufficient wardrobe and dysfunctional thoughts, more confused than ever.

Saturday morning I woke up an hour before my alarm, excited for the day ahead and unable to fall back asleep. Opening my window there was a crisp breeze in the air, and the bright sunshine caused the glorious fiery fall colours to shine. It was perfect. I had a huge smile on my face all morning, as I showered and got dressed, before heading downstairs. I had finally decided on a pair of light blue skinny jeans and a fitted white sweater with a cut out neckline. I was wearing my crescent moon moonstone necklace, like always. Ironic as it was, after my parents death the necklace felt lucky to me, even though lots of horrible things had happened since I first got it.

    "No breakfast?" Gran asked, as I filled my water bottle and popped it in my bag.

    "Noah said we would grab something on the road," I said casually, trying to avoid another date analysis.

    Just then Noah walked through the door, his friendly smile a welcomed distraction from Gran's inquisitive gaze. "Good morning," He nodded at Gran, a polite smile on his face. "Are you ready to get going?" He asked me.

    "Yup!" Grabbing my bag I headed to the hallway to put on my black ankle boots. I paused, realizing I never checked in with Gran about all of this. "Are you going to be ok by yourself all day Gran?" I asked, suddenly worried and feeling a pang of guilt in my chest. But Grann merely rolled her eyes and laughed.

    "You do know I got on fine before you arrived, right?" Her lighthearted tone sent a wave of relief through me, and satisfied my conscience.

    "Right," I smiled, letting out a laugh as well. "Well then, we'll see you later!"