Howdy all, my laptop has basically died for real for real so it's time for Shaymie's phone posting era, babeyyyy! If anything looks weird, this is why. Nothing can be done. Hopefully you lovelies enjoy anyway. ~Shaymie
Molly
"Are you excited for the festival?"
Molly finished carefully examining a sugar cookie she'd designed to look like the moon—once again, Gill asked her to supply refreshments for an upcoming festival, paying her quite nicely for it—and looked over at Maya. Her friend was supposed to be helping her package the cookies but was more concerned with checking her phone for a text from Ash. She frowned. They didn't have much time left to use the kitchen at the inn, and she had to head back home soon for her first lesson with Selena. It's been on hold since she got sick.
She's trying her best not to freak out too much over it. It's been so long since she's done anything related to dancing. The most she's done lately is stretching before work or going on a run. Her old ballet stretches still had some use after all. It hurt her heart less to do them now, but they were still a reminder of what she had lost. A reminder of how close she'd gotten and how much she messed up. She couldn't deny feeling maybe just a little bit bitter about how things ended. But she saw what bitterness did to Chelsea and she didn't want that to happen to her. So it was best to just push those feelings away.
"Do you all just gather at Flute Fields to look at the moon?" Molly asked, setting the cookie on the tray carefully. Gill asked for a variety of cookies this time around and she hoped he was satisfied with the three she'd chosen: chocolate-dipped, sugar cookies, and shortbread cookies. She had to wonder why he didn't hire Yolanda to do stuff like this since she was a professional. Maybe he just wanted to support a smaller business? Though... could she even really call her baking a business?
It's just a hobby that people were willing to pay her for. They wouldn't take what she made unless she accepted their money.
"Yeah! It's supposed to be a romantic thing but I've never had anyone to go with," Maya sighed, glancing at her phone one last time before finally helping Molly. She wondered what her friend talked about with Ash. He didn't give his number out to just anybody so they must have gotten close during his visit. Linh and Bridget thought they'd look good together but didn't know if a long-distance relationship would work between them. Molly personally thought they were getting ahead of themselves.
"The moon looks really pretty out here so I can understand why you guys have a festival for it. Back home it was impossible to see the stars or the moon at night."
"You and Ash always try to make the city sound so boring, but it sounds more fun than living here," Maya sighed, packing cookies with an efficiency Molly wished she had. She always took things slow because she couldn't quite shake her perfectionist streak. She thought about what Maya had said. It really was boring, once you got into a routine. Anyone outside of your friend group became a faceless blob that you didn't care about.
Molly liked it here better. The people were nicer and she actually felt like she knew them. Best of all, nobody expected perfection from her. She felt like she could actually live her own life now without disappointing anyone.
"There's more things to do there, but it feels kinda empty. People only really care about themselves. I'm sure you'd like visiting the city, though. There's a lot of interesting food to eat there!" She could have sworn Maya started drooling at the mention of food. She wished she could be like her and enjoy food without stressing about it. She didn't count calories anymore but it's not like she can just stop thinking about them.
There were a lot of worries hiding at the back of her mind that she preferred to not think about. She could talk about them with Kasey or Angela but opted not to. At least not until they worked their stuff out. Her issues could wait. She wanted to be able to be in the same room as both of them without that awkward tension hanging in the air. If they didn't fix it before Thanksgiving then she might have to do some meddling.
Maya's phone pinged with a notification. She lunged across the kitchen to grab it, her cheeks flushing when she read the text. Okay, maybe Bridget and Linh were right. Molly busied herself with counting the amount of cookies left. Only a couple dozen more left and she was done. She had to wonder if she went overboard. She didn't even know if everyone was coming to the festival, but she'd baked enough for the whole town. Oh well. Angela, Luke, and Kasey would eat any leftovers. It was impossible for food to go to waste around them.
"Sorry about that!" Maya squeaked out after answering the text. She tucked her phone into her apron and giggled nervously. "Um... You and Ash used to date, right? You don't think it's weird that I'm talking to him?"
"No...? Why would I think it's weird?"
"I'm like your best friend! And he's your ex! What if we start dating? You won't be jealous?"
Molly tilted her head. Was she supposed to be jealous? She didn't really understand why. What Ash did after dating her was really none of her business, and she told Maya exactly that. There was no reason to be jealous. She didn't think she's ever been jealous in that sort of way.
"Thank you!" Maya squealed, sweeping Molly into a bone crushing hug. She was stronger than she looked. "I know I probably shouldn't be getting ahead of myself but I really like him! I just don't want to make anything weird. You know, sisters before misters and all that! I promise I wouldn't have gone after him if you didn't want me to!"
"You're very talented, Molly," Selena said, lips curling into a smile around the rim of a teacup. Molly felt her face flush at the way the dancer was looking at her. The whole dance lesson was full of looks like that and she found it hard to really focus. Nobody's ever really looked at her like that before. She actually felt... mature. Wanted. Not just Kasey and Angela's angelic little sister.
"T-Thank you... But that wasn't really anything special. You should have seen what I used to do on stage!" Molly giggled, glowing a bit with pride. It's been a while since she's done anything related to dancing and while what she'd shown Selena was just some of the basics, she forgot how much she liked being complimented. Chelsea made her feel bad for getting any sort of compliments, calling her selfish and self-centered. She always said some nonsense about Molly getting a big head.
"I've seen videos. You have a very dedicated fanbase."
Molly was blushing for a different reason now. She didn't know where all her popularity came from. Someone happened to record one of her performances and post it online and the next thing she knew, it went viral. She gained thousands of followers on her social media practically overnight and suddenly she felt an even stronger need to be perfect. She hated the idea of disappointing people. So many people would send her messages saying that she was an inspiration. How could she let them down after hearing something like that? People told her that their daughters and little sisters looked up to her.
"I still don't know why so many people ended up liking me so much." There were other people she performed with that were prettier and more charismatic. Why was she the one that people ended up paying attention to? She supposed if her career did end up getting off the ground, people would have been paying attention to her anyway. At least then it would make sense. But for them to like her when she turned into a nervous, stammering wreck when speaking to them didn't make any sense to her.
"It's because you're cute." Selena reached across the table and cupped Molly's chin, turning her face so they were making eye contact. "Those big hazel eyes, rosy pink lips, and adorable freckles... You look like a doll, sweetie. Absolutely precious. I could just eat. You. Up."
Selena leaned in closer with every word until their lips were mere inches away from each other. Molly felt breathless. Nobody's ever been this forward with her before. It was nerve-wracking but also... exciting. Really exciting. Her heart felt like it was going to skip out of her chest.
"Have you ever kissed a woman before?" She shook her head, even more heat flooding to her face when Selena smirked. "Would you like to?"
"I... Um..."
"You don't have to if you don't want to, Molly. I'm not trying to force you into anything." Selena leaned back in her seat and took another sip of tea. Molly settled back in her own seat and looked down at the plate in front of her. Why was she hesitating when she knew what she was getting into? She didn't invite Selena over for nothing. It would be a waste of time to back out now.
"I do want to," she murmured, twirling a bit of hair around her finger. "I've just never done anything like this with someone I'm not dating. So I'm kinda nervous. But, um... I really do want to try new things with you. I know that's why you wanted to come over, even though I don't know why you're interested in me. I don't really have any experience..."
"That's exactly why I'm interested in you. Wouldn't it be better to learn from someone you know instead of some stranger who probably won't treat you right?"
Well... She had a point. Not like Molly would ever try to get with a stranger. She wasn't Chase—
She hated that uncomfortably tight feeling she got in her gut when she thought of Chase with that tourist. It didn't make any sense. What (or who) he did on his own time was none of her business. She wasn't the only person allowed to spend time with him. She spent enough time with him as it is, and while he's repeatedly said that she doesn't annoy him, she had to worry if he was only saying that because he knew Angela would get angry if he was ever really rude to her.
He's been acting differently lately. He doesn't look at her as much anymore, and he spent more time in the kitchen when she visited him at work. Did she make things weird between them by staying at his house when he was sick? It's not like she asked him if she could. She just invited herself to stay. Chase liked having his own space, and she stuck her nose in his business... But if she didn't then who would?
Now isn't really the time to be thinking about Chase, is it?
"Um... Are you only interested because you want to be first? It's just... You've never even really spoken to me until after Chelsea told the whole town my business." She wouldn't be mad if that was the case. She was just curious. Her question made Selena smile for some reason, her pretty painted lips curving up in a smirk.
"Something like that. Does it bother you?"
"N-No... It's fine. That just makes it less complicated." They were both helping each other without there being any weird feelings attached. She let out a breath and suggested they move to the couch. Leaning across the table was bound to get uncomfortable. She was surprised when Selena helped her clean up the dining table before joining her on the couch. She was still a bit nervous but nowhere near as anxious as she'd previously been. Knowing that she had a choice, that she could ask to stop if she needed to, was really reassuring.
Here goes nothing...
Selena's lips were softer than she expected. Molly breathed in her tropical perfume and shivered. This wasn't scary like she thought it would be. It was actually... nice, especially when Selena tucked a bit of hair behind her ear and stroked her cheek. She's never been kissed like this. Mark's kisses were sloppier and Ash's never lingered for too long. Selena's was just right. Firm but not too forceful or overbearing. Molly wouldn't mind kissing her more after today. If this is nothing serious then surely she wouldn't mind helping her practice, right? It felt like she was enjoying this too.
"How far are you willing to take this, Molly?" Selena murmured against her lips, barely parting enough for her to take a breath. Molly felt even more heat flood to her face. Being asked about it and actually talking about it was more embarrassing than if Selena just did what she wanted. She's not used to her wants being considered.
"I want..." I want someone to finally take me seriously. I want to try something new instead of being scared all the time. Angie said sex stuff is no big deal and she does it all the time, so... "I want to keep going. I don't want you to stop."
Unlike pretty much everyone else in Molly's life, Selena didn't ask her a million times if she was sure. She didn't hesitate to go right back to kissing her. Molly closed her eyes and felt herself melt into the sensation. There was nothing to overthink about this. No pressure to do anything a certain way. She can just let herself enjoy something nice without worrying about a thing. Selena deepened the kiss after a few minutes, when Molly was starting to feel lightheaded and breathless again, and she was surprised by how much she already wanted more.
She's never felt anything like this even with Ash. At least... not this strongly. The mood always ended up ruined in one way or another but it's different now. Nobody's going to walk in and Selena was confident enough in her body and sexuality to not ask to stop. Molly loved Ash but he didn't feel comfortable showing off his body. She wasn't going to make him endure something he didn't want just because she was interested in taking things to the next level. If they both weren't enjoying it then she didn't want to do it.
There was a hunger boiling deep in her gut. It was new and exciting and interesting. They broke apart just long enough for Selena to pull her shirt off. The cool air did little to soothe Molly's flushed skin. She was warm all over and nothing could bring her temperature back down. She whimpered at the slow way Selena was running her hands over her body. How could something so subtle and simple feel so nice? She would have expected it to tickle but instead it just sent more shivers down her spine.
"You have no idea how long I've wanted this," Selena whispered, hands stopping right under Molly's breasts. "I thought you were with Chase but he hasn't made a single move yet. His loss, I suppose."
She didn't really understand why people said things like that. Ash assumed the same thing, that she and Chase were together, but she just thought it was him being overprotective like usual. It's not just Ash, though. Renee assumed something similar once, and earlier even Maya asked if the reason Molly wasn't upset about her and Ash was because she was interested in Chase. And Angela sometimes had an expectant look on her face when the two of them were together, just like she would before Ash and Molly started dating. When neither of them were willing to confess even though in retrospect, it was really obvious that they liked each other.
But this is different.
How is this different?
Because I don't like Chase...
And he doesn't like her.
That familiar, yet confusing feeling she'd begun associating with Chase was coming back and she didn't like it. She was scared to put a name to it. She didn't want to think about it, especially not now of all times. Luckily Selena was here to provide a distraction. She was more than willing to take full control of the situation. Molly easily got lost in all the new sensations, and she was surprised by the lack of anxiety at someone seeing her bare body. She had no problem with Selena's hands on her breasts or her mouth slowly kissing down her stomach. This was the part she had worried about the most, but it was... fine. Everything was fine.
And she felt fantastic.
"What are you doing here?"
"...What do you mean?" Molly frowned, flinching at the harshness of Chase's voice. She hasn't heard him sound like that in ages. Probably not since her birthday when that guy flirted with her, and even then it hadn't been directed at her. Maybe he was just in a bad mood. He liked having his own space and the festival was being held practically in his front yard. Apparently Moon Hill got its name from this festival because people thought it was the best place to look at the sky. Molly personally couldn't wait for the Starry Night Festival a few months from now. It was bound to be beautiful.
"Shouldn't you be with Selena?" Chase spat out, crossing his arms over his chest. Molly tilted her head in confusion. The Moon Viewing Festival was for couples, but she's not dating Selena. Did he think she was because of how... touchy Selena was that one time? She did flirt with her in front of practically everyone.
"She just wanted to ask me about ballet stuff..." And maybe do some other things, Molly thought, face flaming as images of Selena between her thighs popped into her head. An odd feeling of guilt flooded over her. She bit her cheek and pulled out a bag of cookies she had set aside. "I didn't know if you'd be coming out tonight, but I saved you some cookies in case you didn't. I would have left them on your porch so I didn't bother you but that probably would have been weird, so... here you go."
He didn't say anything as he slowly uncrossed his arms and accepted the cookies. She wasn't sure what to say since she didn't think there was any way to fix his poor mood except to leave him be. Hopefully he'd be more willing to talk tomorrow. But when she turned to leave, he put a hand on her shoulder to stop her. And while it sounded cliche, she swore there was an electric shock when he touched her. She let out a squeal and stepped back, suddenly wishing she hadn't left her sweater with Kasey. Because... that simple touch reminded her of the weird dream she had last night.
Instead of Selena kissing and touching her, it was Chase. And while her brain seemed to love reminding her of how handsome he was, she's never thought of him like that. She's never thought of anyone like... like that because she's never been with anyone and now she has, but... shouldn't it be Selena in her dreams? It felt wrong to dream of Chase like that, and even worse to actually... like it. Their friendship would definitely be over if he knew what she'd done. He would think she was a creep. A perverted, freaky, over-obsessed creep. Just because he's the first person to actually treat her like an adult didn't mean she could have freaky sex dreams about him! Weren't those only for celebrities or people you liked?
"Mol—"
"I-I should go," she murmured, stepping away from Chase's outreached hand. "Sorry to bother you."
She quickly left, cheeks flaming in embarrassment. She didn't know what to do. She was terrible at keeping secrets and he would ask her what was wrong eventually. What could she even say? There's no way she could tell him that she had dreams about him. She took a few deep breaths to center herself, her hand going up to fidget with her necklace. Calm down. Dreams don't mean anything, right? They're just some random things your brain makes up while you're asleep. She didn't actually like Chase... Right?
But it would make all those weird feelings make sense...
She swallowed anxiously as she walked over to where she left Kasey at her makeshift cookie stand. He had offered to help her hand out cookies since Angela had gone off somewhere for some privacy with Luke. Mara and Gideon were hanging out with Paolo, who was showing them a book about the moon he'd borrowed from Toby. Gideon looked bored out of his mind but Mara was hanging onto Paolo's every word with stars in her eyes. Kasey looked up at Molly as she approached and gave her a smile that seemed sort of... sad?
"Hey, Ladybug. Chase not coming?"
"No. He doesn't really like festivals." Molly sat down next to her brother and accepted the soda he offered her. "Is something wrong, Bubba? You look upset."
"I was just thinking that Lumina would have loved this festival... She loved any excuse for us all to get together as a family. There wasn't much of that." Kasey sighed and looked up at the inky black sky. "It's way too late for me to realize this, but I think that I loved her. Not just because she's the mother of my kids but just because she was a good person. Nice, sweet, and she had an endless amount of patience for me and my bullshit. I could forget all my problems when I was with her."
"Kasey..."
"Sorry for being so depressing tonight, Molls. Guess the full moon is just making me a bit sentimental."
"You don't need to apologize, Kase. It's fine. I can't even imagine..." Dealing with all of this by himself must have been terrible.
"It fucking sucks," Kasey whispered, taking a deep swig of his soda. "I haven't meant to be so distant lately. It's just a lot of crap on my plate, you know? I want to come to dinner but even when I'm not busy, I'm just exhausted."
"I can understand that. I just hope you're taking care of yourself." The sheepish smile Kasey gave her said that he was doing the exact opposite of that. She sighed. He's always been like this. Always ignored his own needs to care for the people around him. Molly felt less like a sister and more like a burden sometimes. Kasey dropped everything to care for her when she shut down after their father's death, and after the accident she'd been so depressed that he worried about leaving her alone for too long. All he did for a long while was work and come home to take care of her. He didn't see many of his friends and when it was all over, Jack was really the only person he spoke to.
She felt bad for practically ruining his social life, but he tried to convince her that it was okay and that he didn't want to be friends with anyone who didn't bother sticking around during the hard times.
If she'd been a bit stronger then he wouldn't have had to sacrifice so much...
"I'll be fine, Molls. Can't break down now. Rosie and Gideon are depending on me."
Molly hugged Kasey and buried her face in his side, breathing in the comforting scent of his cologne. She wished he would talk more about the things that bothered him. He knew about every single thing that's ever gone wrong in her life but she couldn't think of a single time he's ever confided anything in her. Her entire life, Kasey's been her rock. She thought nothing could hurt him. Angela was the emotional one and he was the one that always stayed calm and knew what to do. But ever since they lost their father, she's been seeing more and more cracks in her rock. She's seen him get angry. She's seen him cry. She's seen him on days where he was so overwhelmed that he didn't want to get out of bed (but those are so rare that she'd almost convinced herself they were a dream).
"I love you, Kasey." Her words were muffled by his sweater but she was sure he heard her. "You can talk to me if you need to. I'm not a little kid anymore. You can trust me with things."
"God, don't remind me," Kasey sighed, putting a hand on her head. "How are you an adult now? It feels like only yesterday you were starting high school and now look at you. You're fucking old enough to drink now! Ange told me—"
He cut himself off with a choked gasp. Molly looked up to find that he was looking away with an embarrassed expression on his face.
"What did Angie tell you?"
"She said that she almost had to have the talk with you. And that's not something I think I'll ever be ready for even though it's long overdue. I hope you know that we have our reasons for worrying about you. We sheltered you way too much and it's coming back to kiss us in the ass."
Now it was Molly's turn to blush. She was hoping that Angela wouldn't tell Kasey about that. She wasn't even sure what got the idea in her head in the first place. She'd never worried about stuff like that until...
Until she saw Chase leave with that tourist.
Oh...
Was that odd feeling sitting at the pit of her gut this whole time jealousy? God, what an awful, cruel thing. How could Chelsea live with this feeling for years? Molly's only been dealing with it for a little while and she didn't like it. Feeling like this didn't feel right. She's felt a lot of bad things in her life but this was by far the worst. Chase isn't even hers to feel envious over. They're not together and she couldn't ever see a future where they would be. He's made his type perfectly clear and it's not her. He liked... worldly girls. Ones with experience. Not silly naive ones like her.
"I don't feel so good," she mumbled, standing up from her folding chair on wobbly legs. "I'm gonna go home and lay down. Tell Rosie and Giddy I said good night."
"I can walk you home if you need—"
"I'll be fine, Bubba. Enjoy the festival for me. I'll text you when I'm home, okay?" She felt bad for worrying Kasey, but she didn't want to completely ruin his first festival in Castanet. If she stayed then he'd spend the whole time constantly checking on her and asking if she was okay. She pecked his cheek and gave him another hug. He didn't need to worry about her, especially not over something as silly as a crush. It would probably be embarrassing if he ended up worrying because of that.
She was nearly home when she heard a familiar voice calling her name. She hoped Chase didn't notice the subtle way she flinched. She was hoping to spend the night alone so she could sort through her thoughts. Figure out what to do and all that. She's not sure if she should tell him. She's never had to deal with rejection before, and she didn't want to ruin their friendship. It would be better to keep this to herself for now. Maybe sometime in the future she could tell him once she built up some courage.
"Hey, Chase! I thought you were staying home tonight," she turned to face him with a smile that she hoped he didn't see through. Knowing her luck, he'd definitely notice.
"You ran off before I could say anything. You weren't bothering me, Molly. I was just in a pissy mood because I was... worried about you." He sighed when she tilted her head and rubbed the back of his neck. "Selena's not really the type of person you should mess around with, you know. She just sees you as a toy."
"A toy...?" She didn't think that was exactly accurate, but she didn't know how to describe it. Toy wasn't exactly right. That would mean that she was being used and what she'd done with Selena was something that benefited them both. Or at the very least, it was something they both wanted. Chase didn't know that, though. He was just trying to look out for her. She smiled again, genuinely this time. "I'll be fine, Chase. Nothing bad will happen. Selena's really nice."
"You think everyone's nice."
"That's because everyone here is nice. Well... except for Craig. He's even grumpier than you were when we first met, and I don't think any amount of time spent talking on the beach will get him to be nicer." Molly giggled at the reminder of how she and Chase originally got to know each other. Looking back on it made her feel a bit silly now. She could have just gone to the bar from the start instead of meeting up with Chase late at night in some secret middle of the night rendezvous. It started off as a coincidence at first. Then it became a habit until she decided to tag along with Angela one night. She almost missed those nights at the beach. They were calmer than nights spent at the bar, and she didn't have to share Chase with anyone. Wait... Sharing him felt wrong somehow. It made her sound like some jealous girlfriend or something.
"Yeah, well... You should still watch out with Selena. If she ever tries to force you into something—"
"She won't. I appreciate your concern but right now you're starting to sound like Kasey. I told you there's nothing to worry about." Molly closed her eyes and let out a heavy breath. As much as she'd like to spend the festival with Chase, she needed some time to herself tonight. She turned away so she didn't get distracted by his pretty purple eyes. "I-I'm not really feeling well, so I think I'm going to head to bed early. See you tomorrow?"
Chase's silence lasted a bit too long so she glanced over at him just in time to catch a scowl on his face before it went away. His fists were clenched at his side as he muttered out a "see you tomorrow."
What do I do now...?