Chapter 6
Night of Libby's Bat Mitzvah
One bright and sunny day in Brighton, Molly asked Libby to go on a picnic with her. It was all so unexpected for Libby. She didn't know what this was about, but didn't want to seem ungrateful, so she decided to come along.
Libby followed Molly through the grassy fields until they both reached the picnic blanket. There were all kinds of food set up on the blanket, much to Libby's surprise.
"Wow! Molly, did you really do all of this for me?" Libby asked in joy.
"Of course! I wanted this day to be special for you!" Molly explained.
It was at that point when Libby gave Molly a confused look. "For me? I don't understand. Why did you go through all this trouble for me?"
Molly took a deep breath before she was ready to confess her feelings, "Libby, after all that we have been through together, I can't hide my feelings anymore! You have always been by my side no matter what, and I can't imagine my life without you! You see, I love you, Libby Stein-Torres! I have always loved you!"
Surprised by what she heard, Libby placed a hand over her mouth in shock. "Oh, Molly! I have always loved you too! I was just too scared to say anything! You are the best friend I could ever ask for, and you have always been there for me when I needed you! I would be happy to be your girlfriend, I mean, if you want us to be girlfriends, at least." Libby shyly looked away.
It was at that moment, when Molly felt her hearting beating really fast. She never thought that this day would come. In response, Molly took Libby's hands as she and Libby closed their eyes before they were about to kiss. Right when their lips were getting close to one another, Molly suddenly heard an annoying beeping sound.
Startled, Molly woke up from her bed, covered in sweat. Molly looked to her side to realize that the beeping sound was coming from her alarm clock. Annoyed that it was all just a dream, Molly buried herself under her covers before letting out a scream of frustration.
"Hey, would you keep it down! I'm still trying to sleep!" Scratch yelled, annoyed with Molly screaming.
"Sorry, Scratch!" Molly apologized before she got out of bed before getting ready for school.
It was another regular school day for Molly. Throughout the day, Molly kept thinking back to that dream she had about Libby. Whenever she had to sit next to Libby in class, Molly had to look away from her and pretend that everything was fine.
Just when Molly thought her long day of school would never end, the last bell of the day rang, indicating the end of the school day. Molly was about to pack up before Libby approached her desk with an invitation in her hand.
"Hi, Molly! There is something that I wanted to ask you. You know that I am turning 13 on Saturday, right?" Libby asked.
"Of course! I would never forget my bestie's birthday!" Molly replied with a smile.
Libby smiled as well! "Well, I wanted to give you this invitation for that night!" Libby placed the invite on Molly's desk.
"Sweet baby corn! An invitation? I love invitations!" Molly exclaimed.
Libby squealed in joy, clearly just as excited as Molly. "Open it!" She encouraged.
At that moment, Molly opened the invitation as it revealed that Libby was having her Bat Mitzvah on Saturday. Upon seeing this, Molly felt so happy for Libby. After all of Libby's birthday parties that Molly attended over the years, she knew that Libby's Bat Mitzvah was going to be the most exciting.
"Ooh, a Bat Mitzvah!" Scratch noticed the invitation, assuming it had something to do with bats.
"Uh, I think it's pronounced, Bot Mitzvah." Molly corrected.
"That is correct!" Libby replied, assuming that Molly was speaking to her. "For months, I've been studying Hebrew, practicing my Torah portion, and trying on dresses, which have given me stress hives and contact hives!" Libby pulled up the sleeve of her sweater to reveal that she has hives all over her arms, much to Molly's horror. "But it will all be worth it because while I'm a girl today, on Saturday, I shall become a woman!"
Libby posed dramatically with her hair blowing in the wind. This caused Molly to gaze at Libby in a loving manner.
"I'm so happy for you, Libby! I promise I'll be there to support you every step of the way!" Molly promised.
"Thank you, Molly! I really appreciate it! I'll see you on Saturday!" Libby waved goodbye before she left.
Later that day, Molly and Scratch were on the computer, looking up videos on Bat Mitzvahs. Every video that they watched showed a bunch of fancy parties, leaving Molly and Scratch surprised by what they were looking at. If this was what Bat Mitzvahs were like, they could only imagine how amazing Libby's Bat Mitzvah would be.
"An ice volcano and hot fudge lava?! And is that Atomic Pink?!" Scratch exclaimed, surprised that one of the Bat Mitzvahs managed to get the popular K-pop group.
"This is incredible! Don't you see, Scratch? This is as big as a wedding, a sweet sixteen, our curse-aversary! If Libby's party is anything like what we just saw, there is no doubt that Libby would have the best Bat Mitzvah ever!"
"Not to mention all of the fancy food I get to try out too!" Scratch replied. "I can't wait to try out the chocolate fountain!"
"You wouldn't have to wait much longer since we only have to wait a few more days! I'd better get ready!" Molly said as she started to think about what dress she should wear.
For the next couple of days, Molly made preparations for Libby's Bat Mitzvah. Every passing day, Molly got more and more excited for Libby's special day. As the night of the Bat Mitzvah arrived, Molly's parents dropped her off at the synagogue. She made it just in time to see the ceremony begin.
Here, she watched as Libby stood on the podium, reading from the Torah. Even though Molly didn't understand any of it, she was still happy for Libby, knowing that her special night was off to a great start! As she gazed at Libby, a blush formed across Molly's face as she couldn't stop admiring how beautiful Libby looked.
After Libby finished reading from the Torah, everyone made their way to the party room. Excited, Molly and Scratch rushed in, expecting to see a fancy room with all kinds of Libby-themed decorations and delicious food. Instead, they were shocked to see that the room was mostly empty, and barely had any decorations, apart from the occasional turtle-themed balloon.
Despite that, Libby was still happy with how everything was going so far. She took notice of Molly, happy that her best friend could make it. Upon taking a closer look at the purple dress Molly was wearing, Libby couldn't help but think that Molly looked kind of pretty. After giving a loving sigh, Libby chose to ignore her feelings for now and greet her best friend.
"Molly! Oh, thanks for coming to synagogue!" Libby thanked as she gave Molly a hug. "Ok, how was I? Did I look too nervous? Did I look like a woman?"
"Oh, yeah! You rocked that Torah portion! I didn't understand any of it, to be honest, but you were great! So, when is everyone else coming here?" Molly asked, noticing that no one was here, apart from Libby's family members.
"Everyone is here!" Libby explained before she took out her guest list and crossed out Molly's name, which was the only name on the list. "You are actually the only one who I wanted to come here."
"What? Just me? I know that you're other birthdays were pretty small too, but didn't you want others to come as well on this special night?"
"Oh, no! All I need is you, Rabbi Katz, and my fam!" Libby said before she decided to introduce the rest of her family. "Ok, um, Mom, you know! That's Uncle Ted and Aunt Meg, and their sons, Joshua and Gordy! Oh, wait! Where is Gordy?" Libby asked, noticing that her cousin was nowhere to be found.
Suddenly, the girls were startled when a boy jumped out from a nearby potted plant. Molly assumed that this boy was supposed to be Gordy. The boy ended up giving Molly a flirtatious look, much to her discomfort.
"Enchante, my lady!" Gordy began to flirt with Molly. "In 97 days, I'll be a man."
Seeing Gordy flirt with her best friend like that caused Libby to glare at her cousin in anger. She didn't know why, but seeing Gordy flirting with Molly like that just made Libby want to punch her cousin in the face. Molly is way too good for Gordy, anyway. Seeing that Molly was uncomfortable with it as well, Libby decided to help her out.
"Get out of here, Gordy!" Libby pushed Gordy away, much to his surprise.
"Why does it matter to you, Libby?" Gordy stared at Libby in suspicion.
"Uh-" Libby tried to think of an excuse. "Because Molly clearly doesn't like you, so just leave her alone!"
"Fine, but I won't be away forever!" Gordy gave Molly one last loving look. "I shall be back for you, my love!"
With a frustrated sigh, Libby took a moment to calm down. "Sorry, Molly! I hope Gordy didn't creep you out too much."
Molly shook her head. "No. Thanks for protecting me, Libby!"
The girls stood in silence as they both blushed and shyly looked away from each other. The awkward silence was thankfully broken when Leah called out for her family to help her.
"Could I get some help with the cake in here?" Leah yelled as Libby and the rest of her family came to Leah's aid.
Now that she was alone, Molly took a look around the room and began to feel sorry for Libby. This was supposed to be her special day, but the party doesn't look nearly as amazing as the parties she saw in the videos.
"Wow! This party is deader than I am, and I'm dead!" Scratch joked.
At that moment, Molly turned to Scratch, clearly not amused. "This is serious, Scratch! This party isn't good enough for Libby! Libby is the perfect friend, so she deserves the perfect party!"
"I don't know. Maybe she only invited you because she wanted a low-key party." Scratch guessed.
Molly shook her head. "No, Scratch! This night has to be perfect for Libby, and I know just how to do it! Will you help me?"
"Why not? Anything to bring bats to the Bat Mitzvah!" Scratch agreed.
While Libby and her family were distracted with helping Leah with the cake, Molly and Scratch took the opportunity to improve the room. They both added party decorations to the room, which consisted of fancy tables and lights that spelled out Libby's name. It took a couple of minutes before Molly and Scratch finished putting up the new decorations as they both admired their work before giving each other a high-five.
"This is amazing! The perfect party for Libby! It still seems that there is something missing." Molly took a moment to ponder what it was.
"I'm way ahead of you, Molly! How many bats do you need?" Scratch asked.
"No! No bats! I think I know what this party needs instead." Molly took out her phone before opening an app.
Before long, Molly's family entered the room, each of them wondering what was going on.
"Molly, did you just hire me through Gig Pig?" Sharon asked, surprised that her daughter managed to hire her through her job.
"Yes! Mom, we need an ice volcano stat, and you are the best and only artist I know!" Molly explained.
"On it!" Sharon agreed before she got started.
Molly then turned to her dad. "Dad, you're our DJ! No smooth jazz!"
"I don't make promises I can't keep!" Pete replied as he made his way over to the DJ table.
"And, Darryl get us some guests!" Molly told her brother.
Darryl nodded before he left to find some guests for the Bat Mitzvah. It wasn't long before he returned with a bunch of students following each other in a conga line. This left Molly impressed by how many people Darryl managed to get here so quickly.
"Whoa! Darryl, How did you get all these people here on such short notice?" Molly asked, impressed with her brother.
"People will follow a conga line anywhere, Molly!" Darryl explained. "Anywhere!"
Once more guests have arrived, Libby opened the door after helping her mom. Once she noticed all of the unexpected guests, Libby let out a terrified gasp. She wasn't used to having parties with a large crowd of people. Libby made her way past the crowd before she eventually found Molly.
"Um, Molly? Where did all these people come from?" Libby asked, still trying to process how Molly was able to find so many guests in the short time she was gone.
"Hey, mazel tov, Libby!" Molly placed an arm around Libby's back. "Isn't this great! They're all here for you!"
"For me?" Libby repeated. "But I didn't even want my Bat Mitzvah to have so many guests."
"Don't be silly, Libby! You are really special! It only makes sense that your Bat Mitzvah should be just as special!" Molly explained.
"You don't understand. Have you even considered how bad this would be for my anxieties?" Libby yelled.
Molly's smiled faded. "Uh, maybe this could help you get out of your shell!"
"Molly, you are not listening to me! You are the only one I invited because-" Libby paused before taking a deep breath, clearly frustrated with Molly. "You know what? Just forget it!"
At that moment, Libby turned away from Molly and walked away. This left Molly confused. She actually would have thought Libby would be happy that her party was so amazing. It was at that point when Molly knew that she messed up.
It wasn't long before it was time for Libby to light the candles on her cake. As she was about to walk on stage, Libby stopped in her tracks, trembling visibly. Molly noticed this and realized that it was all her fault for changing Libby's Bat Mitzvah so drastically. Not wanting Libby to go through this alone, Molly approached her in an effort to make everything right.
"Hey, I know that you are still mad at me, but would you at least like me to stay on stage with you so you aren't completely alone?" Molly asked.
As Molly said that, Libby felt slightly less scared. Despite Molly changing her Bat Mitzvah without her consent, Libby knew that Molly meant well and only wanted to help.
"Y-Yes! Thank you, Molly! I really appreciate it!"
With that, Molly walked on stage with Libby. Libby took one look at the crowd, and already started trembling. The fact that so many people had their attention on her just made her want to run off stage and cower in the corner. She closed her eyes in fear, wanting this nightmare to be over.
Suddenly, Libby felt someone grab her hand. She opened her eyes to see that Molly was holding her hand in an effort to help her feel calm. A smile formed across Libby's face as she enjoyed the feeling of Molly's hand in her own. She just wanted to hold Molly's hand tightly and never let go. With a grateful smile, Libby approached the cake, ready to start the celebration.
"For my little girl I love to bits, time to get your candles lit…s!" Leah began, in a desperate attempt to rhyme.
Libby let out a slight giggle for her mom before she lit the first candle. "Candle one is for my grandparents, who've already passed. They may be gone, but their memories will last. And next to the woman I depend, you're not only my mom, you are also my friend." Libby handed the candle to her mom next.
At that point, Leah teared up slightly as she started to get emotional. "Congrats, Libby! I'm so proud of the woman you've become!"
Libby then handed a candle for Molly. "You make me feel safe, and ever so jolly! Candle three goes for my best friend, Molly!"
One by one, more candles on the cake got lit. Despite everything going well so far, Molly noticed a glint of sadness in Libby's eyes. Even if Libby is trying to hide it, Molly knew that her best friend wasn't really happy.
After the ceremony concluded, Molly decided to lighten the mood a little by asking her dad to play a slow song. That was when everyone at the party began to slow dance with each other. Molly even noticed her teacher, Mrs. Roop dancing with her wife, Pam. Seeing their genuine love for each other made Molly wonder if she had a chance to dance with Libby. She was soon startled out of her thoughts when Gordy tried to make a move on her.
"May I have this dance, my lady?" Gordy held out his hand.
Molly simply rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Sorry, Gordy! I'm really not into boys that way!" Molly replied as she walked away from him.
As everyone was dancing with each other, Molly noticed that Libby was the only one who didn't have a partner. It broke Molly's heart to see Libby alone on her Bat Mitzvah of all nights.
"You know that she isn't happy, right?" said a familiar voice from behind Molly.
Molly turned around and was surprised to see that it was Andrea who spoke to her.
"Andrea?"
"I, uh, spoke to Libby when I noticed that something was wrong." Andrea explained. "It turned out that she didn't even want so many guests at her Bat Mitzvah, and only wanted to spend the night with you."
"But why only me?" Molly asked.
"Why not? You are her best friend, and I don't think being surrounded by so many people at her Bat Mitzvah is good for her anxieties. Maybe you should spend time with her and ask her to dance with you." Andrea suggested.
After taking Andrea's words into consideration, Molly nodded, showing she understood. "I understand! Thank you, Andrea!"
With that Molly made her way to the center of the room, where she met up with Libby. Now feeling nervous about what she was about to do, Molly approached Libby with a nervous smile.
"Hey, I noticed that you were alone, and I was wondering if you would want to dance with me." Molly offered.
"Really?" Libby's eyes widened in surprise. "But I don't think I know how to dance."
"It's okay! If you let me, I would be more than happy to teach you the couple of dance moves I know!" Molly smiled.
Wanting nothing more than to spend time with Molly, Libby agreed to dance with her. She took Molly's hand before Molly wrapped an arm around her waist as they began to slow dance with each other.
The girls stared in each other's eyes as they both blushed from how beautiful they looked to one another. They were so distracted they stumbled and nearly tripped. Thankfully, they managed to regain their balance shortly afterwards. Just when they thought they were finally getting the hang of it, they nearly tripped again, but this time, they both simply laughed in unison.
"We are so terrible at this!" Molly laughed.
"I know! I actually would have thought that you only wanted to dance with me so you can get out of dancing with Gordy!" Libby joked.
After dancing for a couple more minutes, Molly's expression turned remorseful for a moment. "Hey, I have been talking with Andrea, and she told me why you only invited me to your Bat Mitzvah."
"Oh. Yeah, I didn't really want so many people at my Bat Mitzvah because it would have been too stressful for me. Besides, you were the only one I invited because I just wanted to spend time with you." Libby explained.
At that moment, Molly felt guilty for what she did. In trying to give Libby the perfect Bat Mitzvah, she didn't realize that it only ended up hurting Libby in the end.
"I'm sorry I nearly ruined your Bat Mitzvah, Libby!" Molly apologized as she continued to dance with Libby.
"It's okay, Molly! It was actually really sweet that you went through all that trouble just for me!" Libby smiled.
Molly smiled back before she and Libby enjoyed the rest of their dance together. Once the dance came to an end, the guests started to leave as they returned home. Despite all of the unexpected series of events she dealt with tonight, Libby considered her Bat Mitzvah to be a success!
"Molly, I want to thank you!" Libby spoke up.
"Thank me?" Molly repeated. "But it was my fault that you nearly had the worst Bat Mitzvah ever!"
"But I didn't! You really did make this a wonderful night for me! Anyway, I'd better return to the bookshop with my mom soon! I'll see you later!"
After Molly and Libby hugged each other goodbye, Libby left with her mom to go back home. As more of the guests started to leave, Molly noticed that Andrea was the one of the last guests about to leave. Wanting to have one last word with her, Molly rushed over to catch up to her.
"Andrea, wait!" Molly got Andrea's attention. "Before you leave, I wanted to thank you! Libby was having a pretty bad night until you encouraged me to dance with her!"
"It was the least I could do, Molly!" Andrea smiled. "After how I treated you and Libby over the years, I really do want to be a good friend for you!"
Touched by Andrea's words, Molly gave her a grateful smile. She could tell that Andrea really is trying to be a good friend.
"Anyway, I'd better return home and make a new video of myself! Can't keep my fandreas waiting!" Andrea was about to leave, but not before saying one last thing to Molly. "Oh, and Molly? Good luck!"
Confused, Molly stared at Andrea with a puzzled look. "Good luck? With what?"
"With your crush on Libby, obviously!" Andrea replied, as if the answer was obvious. "I'm wishing you luck for when you eventually confess your feelings for her!"
"Wh-What?" Molly started to blush. "Oh, no! I don't think of Libby that way! We are just good friends!"
"Molly, it's obvious that you have feelings for your best friend! After everyone saw how flustered you were when Libby kissed you at the softball game, we all know how you feel about her. Don't ruin the chance to be with her! You might not get a second chance!"
Andrea waved goodbye, leaving Molly to ponder what she told her. As Molly thought to herself in silence, Scratch appeared right next to her.
"Well, that was some party! I got to eat so much food tonight! Did you have fun too, Moll?"
"Um, yeah! I guess you can say it was an interesting night for me!" Molly replied. "Come on, Scratch! Let's go home!"
With the long night over, Molly, along with the rest of her family got in the car before returning home. She thought back to everything that had happened tonight. It was at this point when Molly couldn't deny the truth any longer. She has a crush on her best friend.
AN: So, this chapter ended up being a lot longer than I thought it would be, but I still had fun with it! Since Mazel Tov, Libby is one of my favorite episodes of the show, I have been looking forward to writing this chapter for awhile! I hope everyone is enjoying the story so far, and I hope to publish the next chapter of the story soon!