FOR SOME REASON I WAS filled with an overwhelming sense of dread when I heard the doorbell ring one particular Saturday afternoon. Everything in my gut was telling me not to answer it and just wait for the person on the other end to give up. However, as much as I didn't want to see the person on the other side of my door, I had asked Catie to come so we could finish the rest of the paper, and it would've been rude of me if I just continued sitting here in my warm house while she waited out in the cold.

With a loud huff, I shut off the television using the remote control and rose from the couch before making my way over to the door. I opened it in one swift motion to reveal the brunette waiting for me on the other end with a large smile on her face. I tried to muster a smile of my own, but I don't even want to know what that must've looked like.

"Hey Florence, I was beginning to think you weren't going to answer the door for a second," Catie said with a chuckle.

You have no idea. I laughed inside my head and opened the door wider so that she could step inside.

"Sorry about that. I was using the bathroom," I lied straight through my teeth, making sure my smile never faltered. "Anyway, let's get this show on the road. I was thinking we could work in my room," I told her as I shut the door behind her.

Catie nodded her head as she absentmindedly looked around my house. It wasn't filled with overly extravagant items or furniture like hers was, but I found it to be homey nonetheless. Picture frames of me and my family decorated the wall, and I watched her eyes dart to one photograph in particular.

"Is that your mother?" She asked, pointing to the photograph of the woman with short brown hair and dark brown eyes smiling. The picture was taken a few months before she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She was so full of life then. I felt a lump begin to form in my throat as I thought about how her hair began to fall out after going through chemotherapy and how lifeless she'd started to look as the cancer progressed. "She's very pretty," Catie added while turning to face me again.

"Thanks," I managed to say without tears stinging my eyes. "My room's upstairs by the way. I have one desk, but I don't mind working from my bed," I explained to her while walking up the stairs.

I glanced over my shoulder to make sure Catie was following me and felt relieved to see that she was. I didn't need her asking anymore questions about the photograph as I was beginning to feel things I thought I had buried a long time ago.

§

Half an hour into our session, I finished writing my five and a half pages about Benito Mussolini and the rise of fascism in Italy. Since Catie only had three pages of information written about Adolf Hitler and the rise of fascism in Germany, I decided to work on the introduction and work cited section. After spending another half an hour on that, I grew bored and took out my phone to text Harry.

A part of me felt guilty for doing this, but at the same time, I considered the fact that I was done with my section of the research paper and went on to do additional work. I'll just leave her to finish her work and if she says anything about me being on my phone, I'll explain my reasoning.

I scooted back against the headboard of my bed and placed my laptop to the side of me then opened my conversation with Harry on my phone. I read over his last message to me with a small smile.

Mick Jagger Jr: You're such a fücking tease. I had to take a cold shower because of you.

Me: How? It's not my fault that you have no control over your dïck Harry.

Me: Who knew it would take only a few words to get you so worked up lol.

Mick Jagger Jr: To be fair, when I'm horny basically everything turns me on :P

Me: No shït Sherlock. I said I wanted to give you butterfly kisses and next thing I know you're sending me a pic of your hard on.

Mick Jagger Jr: >_<

I laughed out loud after receiving Harry's text and clamped my hand over my mouth to muffle the rest of my giggles. Catie tore her eyes away from her laptop screen and stared at me with a confused expression on her face before going back to typing.

Me: Aw, did I make you feel embarrassed?

As I sat there waiting for his reply, my leg bounced in anticipation, and I felt a tingling sensation form in the pit of my stomach. I glanced down at my phone and saw the three gray dots in the bottom left hand corner, indicating Harry was typing his reply. I really wanted to stick around longer to see it, but the urge to pee had never been stronger. Fück it. I'll just have to wait because if I don't get up and go to the bathroom right now, I'll piss my pants.

I shot up from my bed and tossed my phone beside my pillowcase. "I'm going to use the bathroom. Be right back," I told Catie right before I dashed out of my room and walked in the direction of the bathroom.

I'd like to say I was gone for about five or ten minutes, but I hardly had any concept of time without my phone. When I returned to my room, I saw Catie packing up her things in a haste. She must've not heard me come in because as soon as she turned around to leave and saw me, she let out a slight shriek.

"Oh my god, Florence! You scared me," She breathed out, shuffling nervously on her feet. Before I could apologize, she began speaking again. "My mother just texted me saying she wants me home for dinner now. I finished my section of the research paper, so maybe you can look over it and make some edits," Catie suggested as she stalked towards my bedroom door. "Bye. I'll see you in school!" She called back to me before rushing out the room.

My eyebrows pulled together as I tried to make sense of what just happened. Her behavior came across as very strange, but I couldn't come up with a logical explanation for why she was acting the way she was. When I walked back to the bed and picked up my phone, I saw that it was a quarter to four o' clock. Wow, Catie's mom sure wanted her home early for dinner, my sub-conscious pointed out, making me even more suspicious.

I frowned at my thoughts and shook my head. I needed to stop overthinking things. So what if her mother wanted her home early? It's none of my business. Instead of waisting another minute of my precious time thinking about Catie's sudden departure, I focused my attention back on my conversation with Harry. I noticed he had sent me multiple messages while I was gone, so I made sure to carefully read over each of them.

Mick Jagger Jr: Yeah, that's one thing you, my mom, and my sister have in common. The power to embarrass me

Mick Jagger Jr: You also have the power to do a lot of other things to me that you probably don't even realize

Mick Jagger Jr: I never know what to expect with you, but I think that's what I like about it.

Author's Note:

Hey everyone. I hoped you enjoyed this relatively short update. A storm of drama is brewing in case you couldn't tell. Congrats to all of you who got a code for Harry's 2018 tour by the way. I didn't but that's okay because I was able to get tickets the first time around. I'm honestly so excited right now because tomorrow is my prom.

I'm going to flood my IG with pics tomorrow and Saturday if you want to see. It's a public account: @michaela_shelton

Feel free to vote, comment, share this story with a friend, or follow me on wattpad. I'd appreciate it if you did. I really miss reading all of your comments so please blow up my notifications.

Question for my readers: What do you make of Catie's behavior toward Florence?

Let me know your thoughts.

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Kaylandia