𝘚𝘖𝘕𝘋𝘌𝘙 ⁽ʲ ᵐᵒˡⁱⁿᵃ⁾

𝘛𝘌𝘕

"Julie- you quit the band?!"

"I was mad, they didn't show up!"

"Don't you think that's overkill-"

"Maybe a little!" Julie sighed, titling her head to the side. The two sat across from each other on the floor right in front of the couch, both their legs crisscrossed. They had gotten to Payton and Flynn's house only about thirty minutes earlier, the two siblings had since disappeared. She wasn't sure where they'd gone exactly, but she was grateful she got to be alone with Julie for at least a little. They were having a band meeting of sorts, or at least that's where their conversation had ended up.

Apparently, Elise had missed a lot when she was locked inside the locker room. She never realized exactly how much could happen in just a few hours. The boys never showed, - they were too busy trying to get back at Trevor - and Julie was absolutely furious. Elise was sure she'd feel the same way, if she weren't still so caught up in her own breakdown of the night. It was upsetting to think that, while it wasn't exactly her fault, she hadn't shown up ether. Julie was probably so mad at her in the hours before they came to the rescue, she wondered about the hurt she felt in Elise's absence.

She'd already listened to Julie's vent about how annoying the guys were, there was a five-minute period where they went back and forth about how they couldn't stand Luke at the moment. Yes, Elise was still hung up on what he'd said. And she had every right to be.

"Until they can make it up to me, I'm out." Elise tried to understand where the girl was coming from, but she couldn't stop the aching in her heart.

"What about me, Jules?" Elise really hated to be in this position, she wasn't typically one to plead or complain. But she was so tired, she needed Julie right now. And she didn't want to think about her leaving.

"It doesn't mean we still can't play music. And see each other all the time. At this point I don't think I could live without you." The last part was said noticeably quieter than the rest, the playful tone she adorned in her words faded just slightly in the end as well. Elise felt the now-familiar tingling sensation in her gut.

"Yeah, me too." Julie smiled.

Elise smoothed out the oversized pajama shirt Payton had given her. Apparently, she now had a record of borrowing clothes from her friends. But it wasn't her fault they always insisted, she was fine with sleeping in
her sweater.

"We should head upstairs." It was the last thing she wanted to do, but Elise nodded in agreement.

Flynn's head appeared around the corner then, she smiled when she spotted them and advanced. Her features went soft when directed toward Elise, she hated the way everyone seemed to be tiptoeing around her. She hated the fact that she really did need it even more.

"Hey, Payton just hopped in the shower. And they seem to be unable to spend less than forty minutes in there." Elise laughed, mostly to fill the tense air around them. "Do you guys want to head up to my room for a bit?"

They nodded and stood, Elise stretched for a second and allowed the other two girls up the stairs before her. Elise had been in Flynn's room a few times, but never quite like this. Before today, she wasn't exactly welcomed inside. The walls were painted a soft pink, the polka-dotted bed sheets matched well. It was very different from her own bedroom, but they were very different people.

Julie noticed her hesitance and motioned for her to come sit beside her on the bed. She smiled and complied, her body sunk into the mattress and she allowed herself to relax finally. This was all she needed.
Her head rested on the pillow; Julie was sat up beside her. They locked eyes, Julie bit her lip and her flicked to the pillow she was using, a second later she was lowering her own head to rest it beside Elise's.