Ya girl's back at it again, y'all come get y'all juice! ~Shaymie

Molly

Molly hummed in satisfaction and stepped back from the cake with a slight nod of her head.

Owen asked her to make a birthday cake for Chloe a couple nights ago. She'd been shocked by his offer to pay, especially since she would have done it for free because he's Angela's friend. She almost did end up doing it for free until Chase piped up from the kitchen and practically demanded she accept the payment. He also ended up negotiating a price for her to make sure Owen paid her fairly even though she's positive he wouldn't try to rip her off.

If you're good at something, don't do it for free. That's what her father always told her. She knew he only said it to be helpful and his advice definitely did come in handy. When she couldn't afford to go on field trips because they were too expensive, she used her allowance to buy baking materials and held a bake sale in front of their house to raise the funds herself. She didn't want to bother her father for the money when he was already paying for her to be at the studio.

It was much more satisfying to earn the money herself, anyway. When she accidentally got that modeling gig a few years ago, it was like a dream come true. She would have probably kept at it if it didn't cut into her ballet time so much. If she had been a bit less dedicated to ballet, she could have had them both. She wouldn't have felt so empty after the accident. She'd have had something to do instead of wasting her time moping.

...Then again, maybe that wouldn't have been a good thing for her. She remembered the conversations she'd have with the other models. The way they always said they envied her and would do anything to have a body like hers. They were friendly but there was an underlying toxicity in it all. Everyone wanted to be the prettiest, the skinniest, the one who made the front cover. They constantly gave each other compliments that even Molly, naive as she was, could tell were backhanded. That kind of environment would have definitely been toxic for her to spend a ton of time in.

She shook her head and sighed. She could think about this later. She had a lot of work to do today, and she certainly wasn't getting it done by standing around daydreaming. She had to bring this cake to Owen, take a delivery of tomatoes to the mayor's house, and get to work painting the twins' room. She told Kasey that she wanted to get back into some of her old hobbies and he asked if she wanted to paint a mural on their wall for practice.

Mara and Gideon definitely got along better than Kasey and Angela did at their age. It didn't take long for them to come up with an idea for what they wanted. Gideon wanted dinosaurs and Mara wanted a unicorn, so with Kasey's help they managed to negotiate for a fairytale kingdom with dragons, unicorns, and a fairy princess in a castle. Molly spent the past couple of days drawing out sketches and sending them to Kasey for approval. The twins had very high standards.

Apparently their old room had been painted by a local artist from Forget-Me-Not.

Molly got the cake ready for delivery and took off her apron, hanging it on the hook near the kitchen. Her clothes underneath weren't dirty so she decided to keep them on. Not that it really mattered since she was going to change into something else to go paint the room, something that she didn't care about dirtying. She went into the bathroom to freshen up and make sure she looked presentable.

Not like anybody cares... She frowned and tugged at a loose curl. The people here didn't care what she looked like. They didn't expect her to be perfect. The only person expecting perfection was her, and the thousands of followers she had online. They made her feel like she had to be perfect and they'd criticize her if she wasn't. She still isn't ready to go back to social media yet. She didn't trust herself with it. But she had Angela go through and delete pictures of her from the past year. She didn't want reminders of how bad she let herself get.

It's easier to look at herself in the mirror now. Easier to apply makeup and do her hair now that she could stand to look at herself. Not for too long, though. If she stares too long then she starts seeing that stupid warped version of herself again. She starts thinking that she's stupid, that she should start losing weight again because she's getting fat. She can't deny that sometimes she feels the urge to purge and she doesn't know why.

Ignoring the impulse was hard but she knew that nothing good would come from giving into it.

She applied her lip gloss and stepped back from the mirror before she got too lost in her head. Her hair was still up in a messy bun but she couldn't be bothered to fix it. She just pinned the wispy parts of her hair back with some bobby pins. No need to be perfect. Angela isn't perfect and she's beautiful, confident and mature. Molly could only dream of being like her. She was never afraid to speak her mind or defend herself. She's not a doormat.

It felt wrong for Angela to have any doubts about herself. Not when she's as amazing as she is. Hopefully Luke can make her feel better. He was always calling her pretty and giving her kisses. So different from Mikhail, who only brought her down. He hated everything that made Angela herself. Molly doesn't use the word hate that often. There were few things that she hated and even fewer people that she hated, but Mikhail was on the list, right next to Aunt Dee's husband who dropped off the face of the earth and saddled her with all his debts. Chelsea and Mark were right under them.

Molly sighed and tucked the tube of lip gloss into her pocket, walking out to find that Luke and Bo were back from their lunch break. She told them they didn't need to leave and that she'd gladly make lunch for them as thanks for working on Angela's room. But Luke said it was fine because he had something to do over his break and Bo didn't want to impose.

Luke never turned down a chance for food, so what he's doing must be pretty important. Maybe he went down to see Angela. She's working on the final touches to Kasey's house and making sure everything's in order. Dale was helping her move the heavier pieces of furniture. If it was anyone else she probably would have refused their help, but she said she still didn't know if Dale liked her and didn't want to do anything that could make him not like her. This is her first time dating someone whose parents she had to impress.

"You wanna come with me?" Molly asked, looking down at Pretzel. The cat was rubbing his face against her legs with quiet purrs. He liked to go on walks with her and while she had initially been nervous about it, she found that he didn't tend to wander far from her when she was outside. Angela said he felt more like a dog than a cat. She picked up the cake and gave Luke and Bo a smile. "I left some snacks in the fridge if you guys get hungry. There's some chocolate bananas for you, Luke, and some peanut butter balls for Bo."

"Thanks, Molls!" Luke grinned and walked over to the door, holding it open for her. She nodded gratefully at him and walked out after Pretzel, who was holding his little head up high. He kept walking ahead like he was scouting out for her safety. She hummed quietly to herself on the way to the Garmon district. Thankfully it's not too hot out but she's still going to make sure she grabs something cool to drink when she stops by the house for Gill's tomatoes.

The last thing she wanted was to get overheated and end up in the clinic again.

Pretzel always got nervous when it came time to cross the bridge to the mining district. Normally she picked him up and carried him across, but her hands were full and she didn't trust herself enough to carry the cake with one hand. She knelt next to him and clicked her tongue, offering her shoulder to him. He sat on her all the time at home. She spent most days wearing a furry scarf, and it looked like today isn't going to be any different. He climbed up and curled around her with a loud purr.

"You're spoiled," Molly laughed and walked across the bridge. She used to be scared of crossing it, too. She was fine as long as she didn't look down and didn't think about the way the bridge shook on particularly windy days. She let out a breath when she crossed to the other side. Pretzel didn't show any signs of wanting to get down so she let him stay as she made her way to the blacksmith's.

Owen was standing outside the shop talking to Chloe, but something about his smile seemed pasted on. Molly's steps faltered. Was... he okay? Even Chloe looked a bit worried. Maybe she shouldn't bother him and come back later. They agreed on her bringing the cake today but maybe she could switch her plans up a bit and make the delivery for Gill before coming back. Unfortunately Pretzel lacked the ability to read the room and hopped down from her shoulder to run over to Chloe for some pets.

"Sorry about him!" Molly squeaked, shooting her cat a stern glare as she approached. He was practically preening in the attention he was getting from Chloe. Owen gave her the same strained smile he'd been giving Chloe, which prompted her to ask if he was alright.

"You noticed?" he chuckled, rubbing the back of his head. "It's nothing you need to worry about. I'm fine."

"Okay..." She wasn't fully convinced but she knew from experience that bothering someone who wasn't ready to talk about what was on their mind would do no good. She handed him the cake with a small smile. "But if you're ever not fine, you should talk to Angie and Luke about it. That's what friends are for, right?"

"Right..."

Owen nodded, still seeming a bit dazed. He looked down at the cake in his hands and blinked. There was a hint of a smile on his lips.

"I'm gonna go get the money for this. Thanks again for this, Molly. It looks incredible."

"I might have gone a bit overboard," Molly giggled. He asked for a simple chocolate cake, but she ended up decorating the top with dollops of fresh whipped cream and some raspberries she picked the other day. She even considered piping a happy birthday message to Chloe on top but decided against it. Mostly because Pretzel wouldn't stop nudging her leg and it was hard enough to have a steady hand to decorate the cake as is.

Owen walked into the shop to get her payment, leaving her outside with Chloe and Pretzel. Mira was standing outside sweeping the porch of her shop. After a few seconds of thought, she decided she trusted the girl with her cat and walked over to the older woman with a small smile. She liked talking to her. Sometimes she would bring some sweets and they'd sit and talk for a while.

"Good afternoon, Ms. Mira."

"Oh, Molly dear, Julius was looking for you. He said he wanted to talk about some new product he got for his hair." It came as a surprise to Molly to learn that Julius had naturally curly hair like hers and that he just straightened it every day. She would have thought that someone as conscious of his appearance as him would follow a heat-free routine for his hair like she did. They traded hair advice and recommendations for new products. She gave him Allen's phone number the other day.

"I'll have to talk to him tomorrow. I'm pretty busy today," Molly murmured, mentally going through her schedule for the day. It was Julius' day off and she couldn't see any time when she'd be able to head over to Flute Fields today. She wanted to get as much work done on the twins' room as possible. It was definitely going to be a multi-day process no matter what, though.

"Take care of yourself, dear. The heat can really creep up on you." Mira's gentle reminder made her feel a bit bad. She knew that she'd worried the older woman after the incident at the Summer Festival. Mira visited her in the clinic with a home-cooked meal and asked her to take better care of herself.

She stayed and talked with Mira long after Owen paid her for the cake (tipping excellently because he said she went above and beyond). The excited smile Chloe gave as she talked about her birthday party later today warmed Molly's heart and left her with a fuzzy feeling in her chest the rest of the day.

"Whoa Molls, what'd those eggs ever do to you?"

Molly blinked back to attention and looked down at the bowl of eggs in her hands. She'd been so lost in her thoughts that she forgot that she was in the middle of beating eggs for breakfast. She couldn't stop thinking about what she'd seen a couple of days ago: Chase leaving the bar with some redheaded tourist, who had apparently spent the night since she answered the door when Molly visited the next morning with some freshly picked fruit.

For some reason, she apologized for bothering her and shoved the basket into the taller woman's arms before rushing off, face flaming.

And for some other reason (potentially connected to the first), thinking of the experience led her to ask her sister, "Do you think me being a virgin is going to stop people from wanting to date me?"

She'd forgotten Luke had even spent the night until she heard him choke on a sip of water he happened to be taking. Angela patted his back and leaned over to whisper something in his ear. Molly guessed she told him to give them some privacy because he got up from his seat and went into the unfinished bedroom, which had recently gotten a door installed. Angela walked over and took the bowl of eggs from Molly's hands, setting it on the counter gently.

Molly played with the frills on her apron nervously. She didn't even know where the question had come from. It's not like she was looking for a relationship at the moment. But it was definitely something to consider. Sex seemed to be a pretty big part in adult relationships and she had little to no experience with it. The messing around she'd done with Mark was years ago, and she barely remembered what she did. She just followed his orders until he... finished.

Angela's gaze on her was steady. Right now, she really looked like Kasey with the way she had her head slightly tilted and her eyes narrowed just a tiny bit. He did the same thing when he was thinking.

"Did something make you think about this, Molly?" Angela asked gently, a frown on her face. Molly blushed and looked away. For some reason Chase's face flashed through her mind. She shook her head furiously, her blush deepening so much that her skin felt like it was burning.

"I-I just... was wondering. It's going to come up eventually, right? I can't think of anyone my age who hasn't... done it already."

All her friends lost their virginity back in high school because they weren't losers with one-track minds. She felt like she missed out on a lot of the typical teenager experiences. She didn't go to any parties even though she'd been invited to plenty. Didn't get a boyfriend until she was 17 because she was too focused on improving herself. Sometimes Linh or Bridget would convince her to join them at the movies. Other than that, she really only spent time with Chelsea simply because she lived in the neighborhood.

"'Done it?' Sometimes I forget how innocent you are." Molly deflated at Angela's chuckle. She knew her sister didn't mean it in a mean way but it still hurt. How was she going to get anyone to take her seriously and treat her like an adult when she danced around the topic of sex like an immature teenager? With the life experience she had, she basically is still a teenager! She'd decided to move here on a childish whim and ended up dragging Angela along with her.

The move ended up helping them both in the end, but what if it hadn't? What if she ended up ruining their lives because of some stupid impulsive decision and Angela ended up hating her?

"Molls," Angela called out, the frown back on her face. "Sorry. I shouldn't be teasing you when you came to me for advice. It... it means a lot to me that we're actually talking more now."

"It's fine, Angie—"

"You can tell me I hurt your feelings. I saw the look on your face, Molls." Angela crossed her arms over her chest and leaned against the counter. "You don't have to keep trying to hide your feelings. If something makes you sad or pisses you off, don't just keep it bottled up. That won't do you any good."

"I know that, Angie. I've been trying. I can't..." Can't be like you... she thought, brows furrowing. Kasey and Angela always made things sound so simple. Speak up. Express yourself. Calm down. Just take a bite. It's not always that easy. It would never be that easy. She's been like this for years. She trained herself to hide anything bad she felt. Even now the only people who knew about her anxiety were her family and Ash. Chase, too, and even then he just happened to stumble onto it.

"It's scary. It's really scary thinking about letting everything out."

"I think the scarier thing would be not being true to yourself. I spent almost five years hiding all the undesirable parts of me for someone else's sake and it only ended up hurting me in the end. I don't want you to do the same thing. I mean, who the hell cares what other people think, right? They don't matter at all." Angela paused and tilted her head the other way, the corners of her mouth lifting slightly as she added, "Just don't go around hitting everyone that pisses you off."

"That was a heat of the moment thing!" Molly blushed. As much as she hated losing her cool the way she had, she couldn't deny that Chelsea deserved that slap. She'd do it again if she could.

"We got off-topic anyway. It's perfectly fine that you haven't had sex yet. Everyone makes it out to be a big deal when it really isn't. But I'll ask again, Molls. You're sure nothing made you think about this? Like... you maybe having your eye on someone?"

Molly shook her head, effectively shaking any afterimages of Chase from her thoughts, and grabbed the bowl from behind Angela. The look on her sister's face was something similar to disappointment but she didn't understand why. She looked down into the bowl and sighed. At least she didn't completely ruin the eggs. She could still make some omelets.

Omelet...

Chase made me an omelet when I was loopy from my medicine, she thought, rather unhelpfully. Her cheeks burned. That day was still a blur and she hoped she didn't say anything dumb to him. She tried asking what she talked about but he refused to tell her and only gave her a teasing smile. And thinking of that smile made her heart skip a beat because for some stupid reason she's been thinking about how handsome he is. With a smile like his, he could probably have any girl he wanted.

...Why did that thought make her so sad?