(Azaelea's POV)
I find myself awake in my room at one pm. I glance around, jumping a bit as I spot Violet on my floor, studying the finished portrait of her. My face goes red with embarrassment, and I stumble out of bed, my shorts clinging to my thighs and my large shirt nearly covering them. Violet's face is blank, but somehow less blank than it had been. She was dressed in a black sweatshirt and jeans, but no shoes. Her feet were hidden underneath her, so I couldn't really tell, but I knew that she had put thought into her outfit.
This shocked me, but in a good way, as she had practically been wearing the same few outfits for weeks at a time. She runs her fingers over the canvass, no doubt wondering about the painting. I offer her a shy smile, taking the painting.
"It's just something I started. I was going to give it to you for Christmas, but," I drift off, but she replies.
"It's beautiful." Her voice is raspy and comes out as almost a whisper, but it feels good to hear her speak.
"You're beautiful," I whisper quietly, half hoping she heard, and half hoping she didn't.
"Hah, funny." A bit of her fiery sarcasm has stirred back, but a blush appears on her cheeks nonetheless.
Without thinking much, I clutch her hand, pulling her up. She's surprised by this, but she follows me anyways. I lead her down the basement stairs, opening the door to the library. She gasps excitedly, and I can feel my heart melt a little bit. She rushes towards the nearest shelf, stroking the spines of the novels and picking out a few to read. I caught a few of the titles and grinned, realizing that Violet had picked from the shelf of fairy tales. Most of these books had fueled my childhood, as I had used them to learn to read. I was reading pretty well by three, and I could read a simple version of Cinderella by four. I guess my intellectual abilities stemmed from my love for reading.
I walk over to Violet, who was curled up in a beanbag, her fuzzy socks exposed to the cold air of the basement. I smile to myself, grabbing a blanket from the nearby laundry room. She gives me a small grin when I place it over her, and she begins to read to me with her whisper-voice.
"Peter Pan never grew old..."
She read to me a few chapters, her voice gaining strength the more it was used. I felt proud that it was partially my fault that she was now speaking. At three pm, we joined Alex for a late lunch which consisted of grilled cheese and chicken noodle soup. Violet didn't eat much, but it was more than she had been, and I was grateful for that. Alex had noticed too, and he was smiling as well. Violet Renly had affected the two of us more than we would like to admit so far, but I was beginning to accept it.
~
(Violet's POV)
I sat in Azaelea's room once again, a place I had come to know quite well. Alex sat beside me, texting someone on his phone. Probably his girlfriend. I thought bitterly. Though I was not interested in dating him, I was one of his best friends, and I think that I deserve more attention then a silly girlfriend. Even if he's only known me for a couple months. Azaelea throws open the door excitedly, bringing in plates holding huge slices of chocolate cake. They insisted on throwing me a party after my first therapist appointment. Though I didn't want the cake, I wasn't going to refuse and make them worry about me. After all, this party was supposed to be dedicated to my getting better, right?1015Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡySXZt9nltc
"To recovery!" Azaelea shouts.
"To recovery!" Alex and I cheer, our mouths full of cake.
We sit in our small circle, laughing and finally enjoying ourselves. Snow lay in a soft blanket of snowy white, coating everything outside with a fine eight inches of snow. Already dressed in layers of warm, waterproof clothing, I light up with an idea.
"Hey, you guys, we should go and play in the snow." I say, grinning.
Alex and Azaelea agree and go to find their snow boots, while I hop back over to my own house. I find my boots, hiding in the depths of my closet, and leapt back over the windowsill and into their house. Suited up, we step outside, the cold wind stinging our faces. I run quickly out on the porch, scooping up snow with my gloved hands. I throw the snowball right at Azaelea, which hits her square in the chest.
"Oh, it's on." She smirks, already forming another snowball.
Alex was laughing until I hit him in the face with a snowball while aiming for his sister, and his face goes deadly serious. He drops to the ground, forming a giant snowball with fervor. I let out a scream, running into the woods behind their house slowly, knowing that my footprints will lead them right to me. What they didn't know, however, is that I would be waiting for them with a whole pile of snowballs! I laugh wickedly, choosing a spot near the very edge of their property. I start forming snowballs, digging a small hole to hold them in.
Azaelea catches up to me, her face red with cold. "Hurry, he's coming!"
She starts forming snowballs with me, and our pile grows ever higher. I can hear Alex's boots crunching in the snow, only a few feet away. He nears us and turns around the corner. He pales as he sees our mountain of snowballs. I giggle, throwing the first shot. Azaelea joins in, and we pelt him with snow together.
(Alex's POV)
I groan. I think I might have passed out from one too many snowballs to the head. I'm freezing cold, and there's melting snow all over my face. I open my eyes slightly, seeing a smiling Azaelea and a nervous Violet standing over me. Their voices are distorted, but I think I can hear them discussing if they killed me or not. I grin, sitting up ever so slightly. Violet gasps and steps on my hand accidentally.
"Ow, fu-" I catch myself before I let the curse out, as there were about seven more girls leaning over me.
I sit up, gazing around at the feminine faces around me. Maddie squeals excitedly and sits on my lap, and the other girls giggle. I had never met the rest of Violet's family, so I had not realized how beautiful the girls were. One in particular, with silver hair and a nose ring, catches my eye. She lets out a small smile, not chatting so much as the other girls are. I wink at her, and maybe it's just me, or her cheeks are stained a darker shade of red.
I groan and stand up, picking up Maddie, who squirms in my grasp, giggling. I walk back through the woods and back inside the house, and the girls follow me. We go in through the garage, stripping down to our bare and basic clothes, which were soaked through. Mine were, at least. I walk through the main house, letting Maddie down and heading to my room. I'm prepared to shower for weeks.
After changing into warm, dry clothes I join the girls in the kitchen. Jacques had made hot chocolate, and I take a mug, thanking him as I walk to the living room. I plop down randomly on one of the couches in the large room, and a bit of heat rushes to my cheeks as I realize that I was sitting next to the girl with the silver hair. She smiles at me, and I smile back.
Violet stands, talking in a loud voice, though everyone was relatively close to her.
"So, since you haven't actually met my family, and my family hasn't actually met you, let me do some introductions. Celine is there with the gauges, she's the oldest, then it's Evangeline, with the purple hair, Cleo with the black hair, Maya with the silver hair, me, of course, then Eleanor, and finally, Ivy." She pauses, grinning. "Sisters, this is Azaelea Williams, that's Alex Williams, and this little girl is Maddie Williams."
The Renlys let out smiles and shake hands with Azaelea and I, and the younger ones coo at Maddie. I smile, taking note that the girl sitting next to me was Maya. I turn to her, only to find that she's already looking at me. She looks away for a second, blushing.
"Well, hello, Maya, it's nice to meet you." I hold out my hand, waiting for her to take it.
"Hello, Alex, it's nice to meet you, too." She says in a quiet, but elegant, voice, taking my hand and shaking it.
I had not noticed that Azaelea and Violet had left the room until I, too, had left, following Maya back through the window. We sat in her room, and I fiddled with my hair. The door to Azaelea's room was closed, which it was not previously, and I smirk. Maya's room could be considered bland, but I thought it was actually quite fascinating. Different tools hung from the walls, and small paintings lined the blank spaces. It was interesting in its own sort of way, just like she seemed to be interesting in her own sort of way. I think I'm going to like her.
((I'm sorry guys, I didn't even realize that I hadn't published this chapter yet! My sincerest apologies. ♥))
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