Giving you away - Hosie

Everything is changing

"You know..." Hope says with wonder in her voice. "One day, I'll get married too. Just like aunt Freya."

Josie looks at Hope who is laying on her right. The light is coming through the window of the small tree house, landing right on the auburn haired girl's freckled face. Hope's hair almost looks on fire with the light on them, and the brunette doesn't think her friend could be more beautiful than she is at this exact moment.

They've both been laying on their backs on the floor of the tree house, catching their breaths after going into a fit of laughter.

An hour or two earlier, Hope had rushed to her best friend's house after a two weeks vacation in New Orleans. The girls had never been apart for so long before. They had a lot of catching up to do, so they begged their mothers to let them have a sleepover. Caroline and Hayley agreed, so Josie and Hope went back to the Mikaelson girl's home.

For a long time, all Hope can talk about is her aunt's wedding and how magical it had been. So, it didn't really surprise Josie when Hope suggested for them to stage a fake wedding. Of course Josie agreed to play along. The girls dressed up into their fanciest dresses, and climbed up into the tree house with a bag full of stuffed animals and decorations. Josie lined up the stuffed animals while Hope decorated the room, and when they were done, the ceremony began.

When the ceremony was about to end, Hope said they had to kiss and Josie couldn't contain her laughter anymore. Hope tried to scold her, but soon enough she was laughing along with her best friend.

And that's how they ended up in this position, laying on the floor and looking at each other.

"I'm gonna wear a long and beautiful white dress." Hope says, her eyes sparkling. "I want magnolias, no other flowers. And... I don't think I want a lot of people there. Just my family, my husband's and our friends. You'll be there, of course. You'll be right by my side."

Josie's smile only gets bigger. She listens to every little detail Hope is willing to share about her dream wedding, secretly keeping track of everything that's coming out of her best friend's mouth. Her eyes never leave the freckled face of the Mikaelson girl.

Later that night, Josie finds herself writing down what Hope told her earlier. Every little detail she can remember, not leaving a single thing behind. Hope's dream wedding sounds so nice. Josie wishes hers could be as perfect as her best friend's. She tries to imagine it, but the only images coming to her mind are tainted by the description of Hope's wedding plans. After a while, the brunette gives up.

Josie hides the list in a little box that's hidden under her bed. This box is full of things Josie collected over the years, and strangely, lots of those things are related to memories she shares with the Mikaelson girl. She folds the note with precaution, puts it inside and closes the box again. The brunette puts it back where it belongs before she climbs into bed.

That night, she dreams of a wedding and of two girls who look strangely like an older version of Hope and her.

Hope & Josie - Ages 10/9 - School Dance