His Brownie

|11| Carnivals and Colds

It was now Saturday and Samantha was leaving them next morning. Rouge was ecstatic. He would finally get his room back, sleeping on the couch really messed up his back.

"So I was thinking." Eliza said as she stirred her coffee, "You and Sam should head over to the carnival later today."

"Mom-" Rouge started with a sigh.

"Come on Rou, I know you and Sam haven't been on the best terms lately, but this is a chance for you guys to finally makeup." She said bringing the cups to her lips.

Rouge ran his hand along his jaw tapping his fingers on the kitchen counter. "I don't know about that." He muttered.

"You can bring Lottie and Finn, and that girl you've been talking about all week, what's her name again? Irish? Ivory? Iris? Imelda! That's it." She chuckled.

A sad smile worked it way to his face as he heard her name, he had barely seen her since the Samantha Incident, it's like she had been avoiding him even when he had tried to approach her she would just come up with some flimsy excuse and run off.

He talked to Finn and Lottie about it but they say it was probably just in his head, she was acting completely fine around them.

"I don't talk about her all the time." He argued.

"Yeah you do. You're always like 'Mels is so beautiful', 'Imelda and I had lunch together', 'Mels is so pretty'," Eliza said imitating Rouge with a very deep voice.

"I do not sound like that!" He laughed, "and I don't recall ever saying those things."

"So you're saying she isn't pretty?" She asked raising an eyebrow.

"On no I'm definitely not saying that, she's very pretty." He said causing Eliza to chuckle.

"Well then ask her out to the carnival as a date."

"I don't know about that." He said scratching the back of his neck .

"Alright then whatever you say." She said sipping her coffee, "but now I'm not asking to go to the carnival with Sam, I'm telling you to do it and you know what that means."

"But-"

"No buts my decision is final." She said waving her hand dismissively at Rouge before walking out of the kitchen. Great.

"Oh hi Rouge, fancy seeing you here at this particular time." Samantha said as she strutted into the kitchen tossing her freshly curled hair over her shoulders, her petite pink lips were coated with a glittery gloss, guys went crazy over them but all Rouge could see was how plain they looked compared to Mels thick full lips.

"Its not much of a surprise, I do live here now don't I." He answered taking out his phone to text his friends.

She sent him a flirtatious smile before walking over to the fridge making Rouge shake his head. He returned his attention back to the group chat with his friends, waiting for them to reply.

R: Carnival? 2:00pm?

L: count me in, I've got nun better to do.

F: me too, can't wait for some deep fried pizza

L: gross😐

I: can't make it, sorry😕

L: watchu mean? You can't leave me with them😭😭

R: ??

I: I've got a reallllyyyy bad cold, I can barely breathe through my nostrils, but you guys should have fun without me tho!

F: I could swear you looked perfectly fine yesterday

I: yup it hit me like a truck

F: oof dw I'll save you some deep fried pizza 🤤

L: no one wants your weird food🙄

"There she goes again with the excuses." Rouge muttered to himself, the others might have bought her act but he saw right through it- she was avoiding him again.

He shoved his phone in his pockets and looked at Samantha with a sigh, "would you like to come to the carnival?" He asked hoping she would decline but knowing Samantha the chances of her doing that were super slim.

"L-like a date?" She asked her face lighting up.

"No. It's like a group hang out thing, you coming or not?"

"Of course!" She grinned placing a slice of bread in the toaster.

______

Rouge tossed his phone to the side with a groan, this was the tenth time he was calling Imelda and it kept on going straight to voicemail.

He had thought about going over to her place but her brother was washing his car in the middle of the driveway there was no way he could sneak in without getting caught.

"Samantha! I'm leaving, let's go." He yelled as he opened the front door and made his way towards his car.

She strutted out of the house minutes later, her blonde hair pulled in in a tight ponytail and large brown sunglasses sitting in her nose.

She wore a plain brown sundress and white Nike AirForces, she accessorized with three dainty gold necklaces around her collar bone.

"We're picking up Lottie and Finn so don't do anything stupid." He muttered as they pulled out of the driveway.

She groaned, "does she have to be everywhere?? She's always with you whenever I'm around, her and that dumb black chic with the big brown eyes."

His grip around the steering wheel tightened his knuckles becoming a deathly white color, "take that back right now." He gritted out.

"Why? Is she your little girlfriend or sumn?" She sneered rolling her eyes.

"One more stupid phrase about her and am kicking out of my car and into the fucking road."

"Alright alright, chill I take it back it whatever." She said raising her hands in mock surrender.

"Bitch." He muttered under his breath.

______

"Why is she here?" Lottie asked glaring at Samantha who was currently riding shot gun.

"My mother made me-"

"Actually," Samantha dragged interrupting Rouge, "I'm here because he invited me, were on a date, so try to keep your hands off of him."

Lottie raised and eyebrow glancing at Rouge who only shook his head at her rolling his eyes the process.

"Bitch is delusional." Lottie chuckled as she got in the back seat right next to Finn who was engrossed in his phone.

"Hey Lottie." Rouge called as they zoomed down the road.

"Yeah?"

"Have you spoken to Mels today?"

"Yeah we were literally just FaceTiming before you arrived, why?" She asked.

"No reason." He sighed his lips twisted in a frown.