“I am not lying to you Ava! There really was a woman there!” explained Valeria from the driver seat of her car, “And stop moving, you’re going to get crumbs all over the seat!”
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Both Valeria and Ava were sitting in the seats of the former’s car, with Valeria driving and Ava sitting in the front seat beside here whilst eating a bag of chips she got from the dashboard, moving her legs profusely to find the perfect spot to relax, “You don’t need to worry Val, careful is my middle name… or was it combustion?” She placed her finger on her chin to think, until she turned her head back towards Valeria as she drove, “Anyways… you were tripping girl! There was no woman with us, if there was, I would’ve noticed her blonde hair behind the big hat that you said she wore before you even saw her.”
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Valeria lowered her head as she grips the wheel, looking through the hole and the window, “… Was… she really not there?” she asked herself, letting her right hand let go of the wheel to get something from her pocket, and as she pulled out to examine it; the pocket watch laid bare on her hand, the one the woman gave her before she disappeared. She turned her head towards Ava as she kept eating the bag of chips, “Then how do you explain this?” She lifted her hand to show Ava the pocket watch, “She gave me this before she left.”
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Ava looked out of the bag that she was eating to see the pocket watch, silently wiping her cheesy hand on a towel hanging on a pocket below the car door before she took the watch; examining it as it dangled on two of her fingers, “Hmm…” she mumbled, turning the watch over and then turned back front, “This… is a really old watch; you sure you didn’t just get drunk and bought this in an antique store?” She placed the pocket watch upright the compartment between the two seats.
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As she drove, Valeria turned her eyes on Ava, visibly glaring and her eye brows down, “First of all, I didn’t, and second of all, I don’t get drunk; I learned my lesson the last time I had a drink with you.”
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Ava giggled, continuing to munch on the chips until the bag was completely empty, “But I’m telling you Val, there really was no woman there; remember, I was still upset about Danielle’s choice of name; I mean really what kind of wordplay or even any word means what she just made up for her party!” she rambled, until she calmed herself down by crushing the empty bag with both of her hands.
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The car stopped at a red light, allowing Valeria to turn her head again towards Ava, “But you were just right there with me, you were behind the woman while she was talking; you really didn’t see her? Not even her hat or hear the sound of her heels?”
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“No… I swear Val, there really wasn’t anyone except for us two,” said Ava, opening the car window to shoot the crushed bag of chips towards a nearby trashcan.
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Valeria turned her head back in front, resting her nose on the wheel as she waits for the green light, “Then how…” She took a glance towards the pocket watch as it faced her upright, looking at the hands as it laid still because of the gears, “…It’s not even working…” she complained under her breath.
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The green light finally flickered up, prompting Valeria to continue their drive towards her house; passing by the tall buildings and posters about both Danielle’s party and the Valentine’s Day ball. She glanced at the Valentine poster while she ignored Danielle’s party, until Ava spoke up, “So, what outfit are you going to wear to that witch’s party?” asked Ava, her small frown visible as she read the name of the party on the poster.
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“You’re really planning on going there huh? Come on Ava, Danielle will kill us if we as much as touch the grass around her house.”
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“Come on Val! Don’t tell me you’re not going there, especially when Damien is going to be there too; we don’t want that witch to be with him when the party starts, who knows what could happen!” explained Ava, her eyes wide open, “Besides, you know he still has eyes for you hehe,” she teased.
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“That was years ago and you know how that ended.”
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“Yes…” Her eyes suddenly looked down, until it widens up again as she lifted them up, “It ended with you locking yourself up in your room for days eating nothing but cup noodle ramen and watching soap operas on your laptop.”
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“… I know,” said Valeria, parking her car outside her home’s garage; looking down at the wheel as she daydreams of the memory.
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Ava turned her head towards Valeria, seeing her head look down and her eyes covered beneath her eyelashes, gripping the wheel as she continued; Ava moved closer to her and placed her hand on her shoulder, “I’m sorry for bringing back the memory; even though he moved to another school back then, he never changed his feelings for you Val.”
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“How can you possibly know that Ava, he lost contact with us after he moved; we only just got back to talking a week ago,” argued Valeria, taking glances at Ava before looking back down again.
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Ava’s lips opened, seeming to speak; but she closed them both, gripping her left hand that laid on her knee, yet she hid it from sight, “… Even if that is the case, I still know it; it is easy to point it out just by seeing how he looks at you hehe,” said Ava, giggling while she slowly tickles Valeria, teasing her of the notion.
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“You know that’s not true!” said Valeria, trying not to giggle and fluster over the thought, but her red cheeks gave her away.
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Sharing a wide laugh in the car, the bitter memory quickly disperses away from Valeria’s mind; replacing them with the teasing thought Ava gave her about Damien. After the laugh subsided, Ava looked at her and smiled, “So, please tell me you’re going!” said Ava, hoping for an answer.
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“… Oh, I don’t know; I’m not even sure if Damien remembers that he asked me to come, especially after what I s-“
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“Wait, Damien asked you to come?!” shouted Ava, a wide smile donning her face and her eyes wide open.
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“Um… yeah, I forgot to mention it; he asked me when we were at the cafeter- “her voice quickly spent as the sound of the car door opened from Ava’s side, she looked and it was Ava going out of the car then walking over to the driver seat door as seen from the front window; and she opened it, somewhat aggressively.
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“Wait! What are you — AHHH!” she gave a quick shout after Ava grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the car, grabbing her shoulders to push her forward gently yet fast.
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“You are going there, period!” announced Ava as she pushed Valeria towards the house door, trying to be careful not to make her slip or fall.
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Ava opened the door for both of them to go through, entering Valeria’s house before closing the door behind; the loud bang of the door attracted some ears in the living room, “Good afternoon Mr. and Mrs. Rose!” greeted Ava loudly as they pass by Valeria’s parents sitting in the living room, with her mother knitting something on the couch and her father helping her gather the fallen yarn on the ground.
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“Oh, hello there, you two,” said Mrs. Rose softly with a smile as she turned her head slightly towards them, “Good afternoon,” said Mr. Rose softly yet vaguely as he continued to grab a piece of yar that crawled underneath their coffee table.
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“Hi mom, hi Da- “Valeria’s voice disappears beneath her breath as Ava pushed her up the stairs, “We’ll be upstairs!” announced Ava as she pushes Valeria from behind.
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“Don’t have too much fun you two,” said Mrs. Rose as she continued to knit on the living room chair.
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After a few minutes of pushing Valeria, she opened the door to her room and quickly made her sit on her bed; Ava walked back to the door to close it before walking towards Valeria’s wardrobe, opening it gently, although the bang said otherwise, “Now, we need something that is new… not too new or else you and Danielle would be wearing the same clothes to the party!”
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“You know I can pick my own clothes, right?” exclaimed Valeria, her arms crossed as she sat on her soft bed.
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Ava kept swiping left and right as she examines each clothing one by one — taking two of them out of the wardrobe before turning around to face Valeria, “Because you don’t have any experience in going to parties, and you have much less when it comes to wearing the right clothes for it, no offense hehe,” said ava with a wide smile, before lifting the two clothes she got by their hangers, “And you are going to wear both of this.” Ava lifted up a pair of skinny jeans with her right hand, and on her left was a white shirt with a grey anorak jack.
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Ava walked over to Valeria’s then placed the clothes on the bed, just beside where Valeria was sitting — she gave a sigh, “You know I’m not used to clothes like this, Ava,” exclaimed Valeria, caressing the clothing with her finger as she sat.
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“You used to once, but let’s not visit that memory!” said Ava, deciding whether to pick sandals or shoes for Valeria to wear to the party.
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“… What about you? What are you supposed to be wearing?’’ asked Valeria, in a smug tone.
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Ava turned to face Valeria, “Oh me, well… these.” She did a wave motion over her body, looking down as she does so before looking back a Valeria.
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“…Wait you’re not even going to change?!” said Valeria loudly, her eyebrows raised, “So you’re doing me a makeover, while you are going to just walk into the party with the clothes that you wore to school today?”
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“As I said, I’m just there to ruin the party — not enjoy it hehe,” said Ava with the grin as she shakes her pocket, giving out a tingling sound over their ears, “Besides, you two would be outside; while I will be doing my stuff inside — a perfect distraction for Danielle, and I do love seeing her veins pop out on her forehead.” She laughed somewhat overly ecstatic, with her making Valeria lean her body a bit as her eyes turned wide at the very sight.
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A few hours go by and the sun finally sets down, disappearing away from sight; and the moon rises to take its place above the sky. Valeria and Ava were walking out of the house through the front door, with Valeria closing it afterwards before both of them walked over to Valeria’s car, opening its doors as they enter. Valeria steadies her jacket and dusting away possible dust on her jean before placing the key into the car, turning it on, “By the way, you look badass!” exclaimed Ava while she goes through her bag to check if there was anything missing.
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Valeria backed up the car, leaving her home’s parking space as it entered the road; pushing her foot down on the pedal, heading to the party, “When we get there, should we park the car somewhere a little far from the house? Should we maybe place something over it so Danielle won’t notice that it’s mine? Should we-“
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“You worry too much Val!” said Ava, patting her shoulder, “Does she even know that you have a car? I mean, she’s living under a rock for too long that she forgets that other people have cars too! Hehe.” Ava laughed loudly, and although it was quick, Valeria gave a giggle under her breath.
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A few minutes pass by, and they soon arrived, slowing the car down at a reasonable distance from the party before going out. Valeria exited the driver seat and stood up to see Danielle’s house: It was a large two-story house with a wide front lawn and a visible garden on the back; and it was the only house that lit up like a bonfire among the trees both in front and the back where a forest stood. Valeria lifted her head to see if she could see Damien from where she was standing, but all she could see were faces she could recognize and a few classmates. She lowered her head as she continued to look at the bright house, hearing the sound of music and laughter under the moonlight; but there was only one voice she wanted to hear.
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“… Here goes nothing.”
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