At twelve years old, Amy March had fallen for Theodore Laurence the moment she saw him. He had walked in with her eldest sister, Meg, her arm wrapped around him and he had seemed just so very different than anything she knew.
Apparently Meg had twisted her ankle dancing at the party her and Jo had gone to that night and Laurie had swooped in as the knight in shining armour and drove them home. He looked so out of place, not knowing how to receive the chaos that was the March household, he stood almost rigidly and answered all their questions politely, hands behind his back and a smile on his face.
Amy knew he was rich just by the way he carried himself, (and later on was confirmed when she realized he lived in the large mansion across from their own house), his clothes, although very normal, cost more than Amy thought possible, and his luxury car with a driver was still sitting in front of their house.
Amidst all the questions and yelling, after Marmee had shoved a scone at him, and he was witness to Jo throwing off the top layer of her dress leaving her in a tank and shorts that she wore underneath, he had finally looked at her.
Amy had wrapped the shawl tight around her shoulders and smiled up at him with a naive giddiness filling every fiber of her being. "I'm Amy."
"Hello." Laurie simply responded and smiled softly at her. Amy couldn't help but be completely mesmerized and she knew in that moment, she loved him.
As the years passed on, Amy had slowly begun to realize that no matter how much she loved Laurie, he would always choose Jo.
At twelve years old, Jo was already monopolizing all his time. They went out at all hours of the day. Driving just to drive, going to the movies, out for ice cream. Amy had begged and begged to go with them anytime, but Jo had always pushed her aside and claimed she was too immature, too young, too naive.
It became all too clear that Laurie had fallen for Jo, well to every except for Jo of course. He would glance at her when no one was watching and sigh in this way that conveyed every bit of unrequited love. He would find ways to hold her hand, give her compliments, and hope that one day she would return that way he felt. Amy was all too blatantly aware of this and well, she had thought, Jo and Laurie would inevitably end up together.
On one fateful winter day, Meg and Jo were running around the house, Meg looking for a pair of gloves, while Jo scampered around, looking for hair clips. They had both been invited out to go to the movies with Laurie and his after school tutor John Brooke.
Amy leaned over the table and looked at Meg with wide eyes. "Oh please, can I come? Can I come?"
"I'm sorry, Dear, but you weren't invited." Meg said softly to her youngest sister.
Amy groaned and twirled around dramatically. "I've been shut up in here and I never get to go anywhere. Beth has her piano, but I'm so lonely!"
"I can teach you chords?" Beth offered weakly.
"I don't want to learn chords, Beth." Amy snapped. "I want to go to the movies!"
"No." Jo hissed harshly in Amy's face. "I think you'd hate to poke yourself in where you're not wanted. We already have to deal with dull Mr. Brooke."
"I like him, he's kind." Meg said dreamily. Both of her sisters disregarded her comment and turned to stare at each other.
"I'll pay for myself." Amy begged again.
"You will not come." Jo said in a tone that left no room for Amy to argue.
"I'm sorry, my sweet," Meg said and rubbed Amy's arm in a soothing way that was just so Meg, "but Jo is right, next time."
"Come, Meg, stop petting her." Jo demanded and walked out the door, pulling Meg with her.
"Please, please." Amy begged again, but when the door slammed shut on her cries, she let rage blind her. "You'll be sorry for this Jo March! You will! You'll regret this!"
Not five minutes later, Amy had ransacked Jo's side of the room, tearing into drawers, until she got her hands on exactly something that would hurt Jo as much as she'd hurt Amy.
She grabbed Jo's previous manuscript from it's hiding place and sat down in front of the fireplace, glad that Beth was gone, and threw the pieces in, one by one, watching them all burn into ash. In hindsight, she should've handled herself better, especially since she prided herself on being ladylike and proper. But sister's were sister's, and they fight, Amy and Jo especially.
Amy had not anticipated the repercussions of what burning Jo's manuscript would cause. Leading Jo to nearly kill her in a fit of rage, and then lapse into a prolonged silent treatment. As much as Amy would like to believe Jo deserved it, she loved her sister nonetheless and spent days begging for forgiveness, and a pang of hurt hitting her every time Jo brushed her off.
It wasn't until Jo and Laurie were due for a day out skating, did Meg suggest she wait till Jo was in her most forgiving mood and then try once again to make amends.
That just so happened to be the last possible day to go out skating because the ice in the middle of the pond was beginning to melt, and only the outside was safe. But Amy hadn't known that when she put on her skates and tried to follow Jo and Laurie as they disappeared around a corner.
Amy, on wobbly feet, made her way steadily towards them, so focused on finding Jo that she hadn't realized the ice was cracking beneath her. It took her suddenly, one of her skates getting caught on the ice and the metal edge slicing across her hip bone and her upper arm as she fell through.
"Help me!" She cried. She kept screaming and screaming, trying to keep her head above the water, and praying Laurie and Jo would get to her in time. Just as the pair saw her and were racing towards her sinking form. The current latched onto her and as she tried to fight it, it dragged her under.
"No! No! Amy!" Jo cried as her sister's head went under. She tried to run towards her, apologies and confessions already stuck in her throat.
Laurie latched into her arm and pulled her back. "Jo, stop."
"But Amy!" She snapped, trying to break free of his grip.
"You could get pulled under too." Laurie said frantically. "Go get help, call 911, I'll get Amy!"
Jo skated back the other way while Laurie went as steadily and quickly as he could, he searched frantically, calling Amy's name. Hoping she'd bang on the ice, something, anything, he needed to find her. It wasn't even a second later when he spotted her through the thin ice, and on instinct he dropped to his knees and banged on the ice.
He kept banging and punching at it until his hands were numb. As it started to falter, he punched at it repeatedly until he felt his skin give way and crack, but he wouldn't give up. Not until he saved her.
Amy was choking on water, already feeling the cold sting her eyes, the cold making her body numb. She really thought she was going to die until she heard a resounding crack, the ice giving way, and a hand reach down for her.
On instinct Amy latched onto it, and Laurie pulled her out. Trying to drag her body from the cold, as she kicked and ran her fingers raw from scratching at the ice.
As soon as she was free, Laurie was cradling her. His right hand was particularly raw and bleeding, and well, she was no better from when her skates had slices on her skin. He was well aware that it was pure luck.
"Oh, my God." Laurie cried, holding her head between his hands and hugging her to get her any sort of warmth. "Oh, my God, you're okay."
Amy couldn't respond to him as she continually heaved in air, holding tight to whatever comfort he would offer her.
It wasn't until hours later, after the paramedics had taken them to the hospital. Amy was checked over for lasting damages, and she had her cuts stitched up. Laurie sat across from her in the ER, his hand being wrapped up, because he'd apparently broken it trying to get her free.
They had wanted to keep Amy overnight, just for observation, after all she had inhaled a lot of water and they wanted to make sure her cuts wouldn't get infected. Marmee, who was a travel nurse, hadn't been home at the time, her father was away with the army, so Meg had ended up taking Jo and Beth home, and would return in the morning.
Surprisingly, Laurie refused to leave Amy and, although it was against the rules, the nurse took pity on him as he was the one to save her, and let him stay.
Just around midnight, Amy peeked her head up and saw Laurie looking at her with a blank stare. "Laurie?"
"Yes?" He hummed back at her.
"Thanks for saving my life." She whispered.
"Anything for you, Raffella."
Amy, Beth, Jo, and Meg stood side by side, all looking particularly carefree and happy as Laurie introduced them to his friends. It was a set of siblings he'd known back in Europe through their family businesses and they were visiting Laurie that week.
"This is Fred Vaughn, his sister Kate, and you know Mr. Brooke." He announced and motioned to each person. He then turned back towards the girls and introduced them one by one.
"So pleased to meet you." Fred said in his thick british accent. Amy swooned at his prim posture and kind smile, walking forward and offering him her hand.
"Oh, how elegant." She said and shook his hand, looking up at him with wide eyes and her pink mini dress fluttering in the summer breeze. "I'm Amy March, you remember that name, I'm going to come find you one day in London."
"Oh, I certainly will." Fred promised, both amused and charmed by her outgoing personality.
The rest of the day was spent bathing in the sun, laughing, and flying kites. Amy watched all her sisters that day, watched as Meg and Mr. Brooke flirted with each other, watched Laurie and Jo chase after each other, even watched Beth converse with the others.
Still a little traumatized after her incident in the pond, despite it being months ago, Amy sat idly in a chair, her paper and pencil at the ready. She did a few drawings that day. One of each of her sisters, one of the landscape, but the one she treasured was a picture of Laurie.
She let her pencil draw the lines of his face, the lines of his body, adding in little parts here and there. She watched him grab Jo by the waist and felt a pang in her heart, hoping it would be her, but for now, she just settled for her drawing. Adding a waistcoat, making him a version of Laurie that loved her like she loved him.
For a while everything seemed to be the same and Amy was both content and bored by it. Her mother would always be away as a travel nurse, her father was still away with the army, and most of all, Laurie was still enamoured by Jo.
It wasn't until the summer before Amy was going to start high school did everything in her life take a sudden change. It was the summer that Beth got sick, hitting them all suddenly and Amy wasn't sure what to make of it.
She wasn't allowed to go with them to see what Beth's prognosis would be, but looking at Meg's and Hannah's somber faces, she knew the verdict wasn't good. Jo and her held each other as Meg sat them both down like small children and told them Beth had cancer. Amy felt her heart shatter and that night she slept in Beth's bed, holding her tight and hoping that Marmee would come home, and her father would come home, just so for a moment, everything would be normal again.
About a week into Beth's treatments, Amy couldn't help but shudder and cry every time she saw her sister, thinking the absolute worse at every turn. Meg had seen Amy slowly breaking down, and decided enough was enough. Between her working at a shop and Jo working at the bookstore, and Hannah taking the lead on Beth's condition, Meg didn't want Amy to be neglected. So she asked their Aunt March to take Amy in till Beth was in a better state.
Amy had wanted to cry, and scream, and argue that she didn't need them to send her away, but Beth needed them more. So, Amy sucked it up, packed her bags, and moved into her Aunt March's large estate.
Laurie had offered to take her and Amy was surprised by this. They were both sitting in Laurie's car a few days later, him driving, and Amy in the passenger's seat. It was quite odd to her, she'd never been in the front, it was unspoken that the seat was always reserved for Jo.
"Laurie?" Amy had whispered.
He didn't turn to look at her, but he was listening. "Yes?"
"Is Beth going to die?" Amy asked brokenly.
"Amy…" He hesitated.
"Please." Amy murmured, looking at him with wide eyes. "Please, don't lie to me."
"I don't know." He sighed out, and out of a moment of vulnerability, he reached out and grasped her hand, the other one still trained on the wheel. "She might, but her odds of living are a lot higher."
Amy nodded and looked out the window, mostly trying to conceal the growing blush on her cheeks. "I don't want to live with Aunt March."
"Why?" Laurie inquired, although he already knew it was because of Aunt March's grim and strict personality.
"She's mean." Amy said petulantly. "And it'll be lonely and boring."
"And you'll be worried about Beth?" He added on.
"And I'll be worried about Beth." Amy repeated. "I doubt Meg and Jo will tell me much or gloss over the details in the very least."
Laurie looked at her dejected face and sighed once again. Although he had an affinity to Jo, he still loved all the March sisters. "What if I came to visit often? Bring you updates about Beth?"
"You would do that?" Amy asked in disbelief.
"Every other day after my fencing lesson." Laurie promised her.
"Thank you, Laurie."
Amy spent a long time with Aunt March, longer than she'd liked too, but the odd part was, she found herself liking the old woman. Amy had always liked high society, socialites, the idea of being proper. Which is all things Aunt March prided herself on, so when Amy had moved into the large mansion, the old woman took an odd affinity to her.
Aunt March had taken Amy under her wing, gave her lessons on speaking properly, manners, clothes. All things Meg, Jo, and Beth wouldn't have cared much for, but Amy loved them all and grew to have a nice relationship with her aunt. Despite the old woman's harsh nature, she had also warmed up nicely to her niece, calling her 'the only sane member of the family'.
Laurie had also kept his promise to Amy, coming over to Aunt March's every other day, usually with updates about Beth, and sometimes with presents for her. When she had first met Laurie, Amy had always been just Jo's little sister, but taking the time to see her and get to know her, had caused a friendship of their own to grow.
He'd come for usually half an hour, just enough time to have tea and chat. Which turned into staying for dinner and watching her paint, sometimes they went on walks. They had fallen into a nice routine for the next two months that she'd been staying with Aunt March and it was finally nearing the end of July.
"Oh, Raffaella?" Laurie called as he walked into the drawing room, which was really just a room for Amy to paint in now, and dropped himself into one of the old chairs. "I have something for you."
Amy didn't bother to turn around, focusing on her painting, because the light would be gone soon and she wouldn't be able to capture what she was looking for. "What is it?"
"Oh, come on now, at least turn around." Laurie quipped, coming to stand behind her.
"Laurie." Amy reprimanded because he was blocking her light. "I'm almost done."
"What made you so focused today?" He asked, complying with her scolding and moved out of the way.
"Landscapes." Amy muttered, giving up and putting her brushes down. The light was fading fast and she was too tired to do much else. "Alright, where's my present?"
"Greedy." Laurie laughed, holding the small box out of her reach. "Not an attractive trait in proper young lady's, Ms. March."
"It's not being greedy if the giver is a nuisance." Amy quipped and snatched the box from his hands. She thought it would be something art related, usually they were a beautiful set of colored pencils, new charcoal, fancy canvas, but today was different. She lifted the lid to reveal a pretty pendant, all littered with black jewels amongst a gold frame, and hanging on a black ribbon. "Oh, Laurie, it's beautiful."
"I thought you'd like it." Laurie said and smiled smugly. "Think of it as a going home present."
Amy had froze for a full minute before looking at him with wide eyes. "Does that mean Beth is…?"
He looked solemn and shook his head. "No, she's still going through the works, but Jo asked me to come get you because your mother has finally returned."
"Marmee's home!" Amy exclaimed and on instinct jumped into Laurie's arms. He caught her easily and swung her around before setting her softly back on the floor.
"Let's go, Raffaella." Laurie said with a smile as well.
Amy spent a long time packing up all her clothes, and saying goodbye to her Aunt March. Thanking her profusely and promising to visit more often. Aunt March, although usually a stoic woman, was sad to see Amy go and made her promise to keep up with her manners, claiming 'don't let that troublemaking family of yours undo what I've taught you'.
Amy and Laurie had both laughed at this, packing everything inside Laurie's car, before driving off. She had bounced in her seat the whole way home while Laurie recounted what everyone else's reaction had been when Marmee surprised them all with her entrance. When she finally walked through the door of her house, she had launched herself at her mother and the other girls had all crowded around her, happy to have her home as well. It was chaotic and Amy missed that, the chatter, multiple conversations, and closeness it provided. It was home.
Meg's wedding was a chaotic day, like every other March family day, but today would be one that really set the change for Amy's life. She had put on the pretty blue matching dress that both Jo and Beth had in different colors, braided her hair, and pinned a pretty flower crown into it. She walked down the aisle with a small bouquet in her hands, smiled widely as Meg and John kissed, and watched her aunt look on in disdain.
Amy had watched as Laurie snagged a glass of wine off a tray and gave some to Jo before tasting it himself. They then took off, laughing together as if they'd gotten away with robbing a bank. John held Meg close the whole night, kissing her cheeks and spinning her in every direction. Even Beth seemed to loosen up, dancing every now and then, but stuck close to her mother as she was still technically in remission.
It wasn't even close to the end of the evening, when Aunt March was going to leave. Amy had been dancing with Beth, but excused herself to wish her aunt a goodbye.
She'd caught up just in time and slipped her hand into her aunt's who squeezed it reassuringly. "Thank goodness, the only sane member of the family. I really can't take anymore of this."
"Thank you again for all this, Aunt March." Amy said as they walked towards her aunt's waiting chauffeur.
"Well, I have the money and no children." Aunt March reasoned. She pursued her lips in a tight manner and gripped Amy's hand. "Amy, you're going to be in high school this coming year, correct?"
"Yes, Aunt March." Amy nodded and tilted her head to the side, wondering why her Aunt had asked.
"I was thinking." She began looking down at Amy's small frame. "How would you like to go to a private school, I know a few of the people on the Concord Academy faculty board and I have mentioned some things about you."
The first thing that popped into Amy's head was that Laurie went there, and the second thing was the Aunt March wasn't asking. She was simply implying that it was the best opportunity for Amy and she should take it. Which is why Amy found herself agreeing.
"Marmee! Marmee!" Amy yelled as she ran all the way back to her mother who was standing with Jo. "Marmee!"
"Amy." Her mother laughed, catching Amy as she nearly ran them over. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing!" Amy exclaimed, the excitement still thick in her voice. "Aunt March is sending me to Concord Academy next year!"
"What?" Jo asked dejectedly. "She's sending you?"
Amy couldn't help but feel slightly hurt, because she knew that Jo was thinking Amy didn't deserve it, and it hurt even more when Marmee's face looked crestfallen as well. "It's alright, right? She just offered because I'll be starting a new school in the fall anyway, right?"
"Of course." Marmee muttered, but was still looking slightly off put.
"Congrats." Jo offered weakly.
Amy took this as the moment she should walk away and not even their moods were going to bring her down. Because deep down she knew that Jo thought she had it the easiest, and well, Marmee's forced expression talked for itself.
She told everyone who would listen, starting with her father, and then Beth, and then Meg. She chatted wildly, telling people how excited she was and how it was something out of her dreams.
Around the end of the night, when Amy had been stuck on taking down decorations outside, she had gathered almost all the table centerpieces and was walking them towards the house when she nearly toppled over, but instead was caught by an arm. An arm that belonged to Laurie.
"Thanks." Amy said and readjusted the decorations.
"No problem." He said and gathered a few from her to take the load off.
"I thought you went home already." Amy commented absentmindedly.
"No." Laurie corrected her. "I was with Jo." He said hesitantly.
Which Amy knew was code for, calming Jo down over Amy getting to go to Concord instead of her. "Is she mad at me?"
"I'm sure it's just displaced, Raffaella." Laurie responded reassuringly.
"I'm not so sure it is." Amy said, looking down at her feet. "Maybe it should be her."
"Now, Amy," Laurie started, forcing her to put down the decorations in her arms and forcing her to look at him. "Look, I'm not going to lie to you and tell you that Jo isn't upset, because she is, but that doesn't mean you are any less deserving."
"But even Marmee didn't look like this was a good idea." Amy added weakly.
Laurie forced her chin up and stared her down softly. "Between you and me, Amy, I don't think Jo would do very well at Concord."
"What?" Amy asked in disbelief.
"I think she would excel in academics, English especially, but I can already hear her complaining about the rich socialites, the clubs, the ideals. She wouldn't like it because that's just not who she is." Laurie explained, his tone soft, but sure. "I know for a fact that she hates all that stuff, thinks it's ridiculous."
"Isn't that a part of who you are?" Amy asked, but blushed furiously when she realized how blunt and rude that question could've been.
"It is." Laurie sighed, an expression on his face telling Amy that the thought had crossed his mind before.
A silence had lapsed between them, both instead resuming the task of cleaning the remaining decorations, and running in and out of the house. Towards the end, when Laurie and Amy were taking down the fairy lights that had been strung up across the perimeter. Amy had gotten close to Laurie, only just so he could hear her. "Laurie?"
"Yes?" He responded.
"I don't think it's ridiculous." Amy said softly.
"Thank you, Raffaella." Laurie whispered back.
The month before Amy started high school proved not to be a very eventful one. Laurie had taken to traveling with his grandfather for the last month of the summer, Beth was still doing well in her remission, Jo was still miffed at Amy, but pouring all her emotion in her writing, and well, Amy had taken to going to Aunt March's more often.
When Amy had started at Concord, was when things between her and Laurie had shifted, in a sense. They had fallen into a sort of routine by then, every morning he would pick her up and they'd drive to school together. Even though she was a freshman and he was a junior, she did sit with him during meal times, making friends with his friends. They all took quite the liking to her, because at some point, little Amy March had grown into herself and everyone was drawn to her newfound confidence.
Usually Laurie would have fencing practice and Amy would spend her extra time in the art room, and then they'd meet up so he could drive her home. Sometimes they'd both get wrapped up in crazy schemes his friends had cooked up and ended up tagging along for the ride.
Amy did make friends of her own as well, mostly girls that her aunt had pushed her towards, or girls that approached Amy first. She had been worried about not fitting in or being enough for these kinds of people, but it seemed like she had nothing to worry about because Amy March became the girl to follow. It seemed that her standing with Laurie, the other upperclassmen, and her own natural ambience drew people in.
Amy was walking down the halls of Concord Academy, dressed in her signature baby blue colors, girls tucked on either elbow and a mass behind them as they all walked down to the athletics building. Amy wasn't stupid, she knew most of these girls hung around her to get to Laurie, but if Aunt March taught her anything, it was that connections were everything. So she smiled prettily and talked nice with the girls.
It had become a sort of thing for all of the girls to follow Amy to the end of Laurie's fencing practice where him and his friends would be hanging around, getting in a few faux matches before he and Amy left.
They finally got to the fencing arena, which was really just an old room with a granite floor and large windows. Amy immediately unlatched herself from the girls and moved to sit on the bleachers, closer to where the other fencers sat when they were waiting rather than the observers side. There were currently two matches going on, and Amy didn't bother to look very closely, she never cared too much for the sport.
"I see the entourage has followed you today." Laurie quipped as he dropped into the spot next to Amy. He was still in his uniform, meaning he'd probably go for another round before leaving.
"Don't they always." Amy laughed, looking behind her discreetly to see the girls either subtly glaring at her or whispering about Laurie. "Besides, I'm pretty sure they're your personal fan club, not mine."
"No." A voice with a thick British accent said from the left of them. It was Laurie's best friend from Concord Academy, Alexander, but they all never called him by his full name, opting just for Xander. He had originally spent the first couple years of his life in England before moving to Massacheutts, retaining his accent, but adopting American slang. Something that was both strange and amusing. "They're all here for me."
"Hi, Xander." Amy said as he threw an arm around her and kissed her cheek in greeting. Another thing Laurie and all his friends had acquired, flirting with Amy. "Are you coming tonight?"
"What's tonight?" Amy asked absentmindedly as she pulled out her sketch pad and a pencil.
"We were all thinking of breaking into the pool tonight." Xander answered nonchalantly. Breaking into the school was a usual occurrence for them. "Maybe ice cream afterwards."
"Are you going?" Amy asked Laurie automatically. She never went to things without him, at first because she wasn't sure how to navigate the social scene, but now it was a habit.
"I was thinking about it, but Jo wanted to hangout and I'm not sure what to tell her." Laurie responded. One thing about Concord Academy everyone had in common was the secrets, no one spoke a word about the kind of trouble they got up too, meaning no one ever gets caught, leading to no retribution. Laurie didn't actually subscribe to this rule when it came to Jo, but she just didn't like it when he went out and did these kinds of things or the people he did them with, calling it immature and absurd. He didn't always lie to her, but sometimes he did to avoid the looks she would give him.
"Tell her the truth." Amy responded as she drew out the lines of Concord Academy, one thing she liked about the school was the beauty she found in it, how easy the drawing came to her.
"Oh, Amy," Xander sighed dramatically. "We both know, dear Laurie just doesn't want to disappoint Jo."
On a split second decision, half driven by temptation and half driven by the sliver of irrational jealousy, Amy spoke up. "Well, even if he's not going, I want too."
"Really?" Laurie asked immediately, looking down at her oddly. It wasn't lost on him that she used him as a crutch, not that he minded of course, but it would be the first one she would go to without him. "Are you sure?"
"Yes!" Xander exclaimed, unexpectedly picking Amy up and spinning her around. "Amy can be my wing woman."
Amy laughed as she was then repositioned to sit on his shoulder as she walked over to the large group of what was really now both her and Laurie's friends. "You guys! Amy's coming!"
The boys let out a loud shout of approval, taking turns kissing her cheeks and offering to be her date. She simply laughed at them all, and for a moment, Laurie wasn't on her mind.
Amy had her wrap dress tied loosely around her, her white one piece peeking out every now and then as she tried to avoid getting splashed while people continuously dived into the pool. True to his word Laurie and Jo spent the night together, sitting in the March living room watching a movie, they'd both watched Amy leave with Xander, Laurie telling Xander to watch after her, while Jo glared disapprovingly.
She had loved all the secret parties of the socialites, the crazy things they got up to, the limitless possibilities with the amount of money they threw around. Sure they all coined being prim and proper, but there was a wild side Amy appreciated. At this particular party, they did have a large supply of alcohol running free, Amy hadn't touched it at all, but the others had and she knew they were either all going to walk home or fall asleep in some obscure places.
Many boys had hit on her that night, even some girls too, but Amy had turned them down, and the ones she hadn't were scared off by Xander and the group of boys that always seemed to flank behind him and Laurie. She laughed at their overprotective nature and patted them all on the heads like good little boys.
It wasn't until well into the night, nearly midnight, when Xander, the boys, a few of the girls Amy knew, and Amy herself, had decided ice cream was a great idea. Luckily someone had been sober enough to bribe an employee hours earlier into staying open for them. So when they had all stumbled into the ice cream shop, drunk, a little wet from the pool, and loud, the employee simply turned a blind eye and served them with an exasperated expression.
Amy wasn't sure how it had happened, but at some point along the way, most of the girls had disappeared, while the remaining boys settled down on the various chairs of the ice cream shop, and Xander had paid off the employee to let them stay and come back to let them out in the morning. To which he then fell asleep as well.
Amy found herself in a predicament. She had a few options, one being to walk home which didn't sound appealing in her outfit, the next would be to call one of her sisters, also not an appealing option, and her third would be to call Laurie. So, she sucked it up and called Laurie's number, praying he wasn't with Jo anymore. It rang barely even once before he picked up.
"Amy?" He asked. Amy noted he sounded alert, like he'd already been awake. "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah." She sighed. "But I need a favor."
"What is it?" Laurie asked automatically. "Anything."
"Every one's passed out drunk in the ice cream shop and I don't have a way home."
"I'll be there in ten." Laurie responded, with slight amusement in his tone before hanging up on her.
True to his word, ten minutes later, Laurie had pulled up in his silver Mercedes, still in his clothes from that night and a smug smile on his face.
"Hi." Amy said as she got in. "Thanks for coming to get me."
"I thought this might happen." Laurie laughed. "I love the guys, but their priorities are a little skewed."
"Don't rub it in my face, it's not nice." Amy said and glared at him as a shiver ran up her arms. "It's freezing in here." She snapped and fiddled with his heater till it was on full blast.
"Did you have fun?" Laurie asked.
Amy shot into a long tangent about the night. How she couldn't even dance with one guy, to which Laurie had praised their friends for, how she'd won a swimming contest, how many, many, many, girls had come up to her asking about him.
The next Monday at school, Amy was leaning against her locker with Laurie on her left as they chatted about whether Meg was or wasn't pregnant. Amy was so sure she was, while Laurie didn't believe it. Five minutes later, a loud shout ran out in the hallway, causing them both to jump. Xander and the usual group following closely.
"Amy!" Xander called picking her up like he usually did and crushed her into a hug, which she then passed around as the others hugged her too. "I was so worried when I woke up and you weren't there."
"Sorry, Xander." Amy laughed and patted his arm comfortingly. "I just didn't want to spend the night in the ice cream shop, and I especially didn't want to be there when the worker came back in the morning."
"Yes, she was a bit mad." Xander mumbled and rubbed the back of his neck. "Anyway, we searched everywhere for you, we thought Laurie was going to kill us for losing you."
"Did any of you guys think to check her house?" Laurie asked them. They all looked sheepish and mumbled out a few no's.
"It's alright, boys." Amy said and smiled reassuringly. "I called Laurie and he picked me up."
"Anything for you, Raffaella." Laurie said and tugged on one of her curls.
Xander threw an arm around them both and led them down the hallway, talking about what Laurie would have done to them had they really did lose Amy. He was a dramatic one, but Amy and Laurie appreciated his chaotic nature. Just over her head, Laurie shot a smile, and Amy smiled back. My, my, and not-so-little Amy March couldn't help but feel like everything was right in the world.
It was the day of Laurie and Jo's graduation, and because they went to separate schools who were having ceremonies on the same day, everyone was crowded around the March's family dinner table to celebrate for the two.
"I have an announcement." Jo said, standing up and looking around the table nervously.
"Go on, Dear." Marmee encouraged her.
"Well, I applied to NYU earlier this year, and well, I got in." Jo said hesitantly.
Although she was nervous, everyone stood up to offer her hugs and cheers. Despite the fact that Amy prided herself on moving on from the thinking she lived under Jo's shadow, she couldn't help but feel a little dejected that Jo was going somewhere with her life and she wasn't.
Nonetheless, she got up and offered a hug to Jo, but her eyes had wandered over to Laurie, who looked expressionless. He didn't look happy, he didn't offer a hug, and no sound left his mouth. It seemed that Jo wasn't worried about telling everyone else, she was worried about telling Laurie.
After everyone settled down, Jo looked to Laurie for any kind of reaction, but the only one she got was Laurie calmly leaving the table and walking out the door.
"I have to follow him." Jo declared, starting to get up.
Amy knew better though, he may have been closer to Jo, but she knew approaching Laurie now would only cause a fight to break out between the two. "Jo, I'm not so sure-"
"He's my best friend, Amy." Jo hissed. "Stay out of it."
Amy snapped her mouth closed and Marmee sent her an apologetic look on Jo's behalf, while said girl ran out the door after Laurie.
"Don't take it personally, Dear, you know she didn't mean it." Meg offered kindly and grasped Amy's hand.
Amy waved her off and looked at the door Laurie and Jo had disappeared through. "Trust me, that's not what I'm worried about."
It was hours later when Jo returned and she refused to talk to anyone, Meg, Beth, and Amy had sat at her door and begged her to open up, but it was no use. By the time the next morning had rolled around, Jo had expedited her New York trip to leave in the next two weeks instead at the end of summer, planning to work as a writer before starting NYU. When Amy had gone to the Laurence's mansion to check on Laurie, his grandfather had told her Laurie had left for Europe.
She went home, dejected, confused, and upset. Jo was leaving and making something of herself, Laurie was running away to Europe, and she was still in Concord, pretending to be a socialite.