Eve

12

The night of the festival, the small town was lit up with large lights all around. One street where the festival was hosted had been closed off to cars. Shops were closed and replaced with set up booths by families. The people of the town were wearing unique clothes and vibrant face paint or hats. It was like a festival of freedom, just to do as you please and wear what you want. There was no point other than to celebrate exitance and who we were.

At night, everything lit up brighter. You could see so clearly with all the lights and lanterns lit up by the booths and activities. Kids danced around, yelling to each other and occasionally bumping into something as they forgot where they were going. The scent of warm food and chatter filled the rest of the air, followed by live music playing in the distance. I had never been to an event so welcoming. I couldn't help but smile.

On my way to where Eve said her booth would be, I spent my time gazing in awe at all the beautiful decoration. It was simply straight out of a dream.

Eve's booth was lit up by orange lights, underneath a large tree that had streamers dangling off the branches. It was one of the closest to the entrance, by the lagoon. Before even fully getting to her booth, she was already there to great me, grabbing my hands in hers and a large grin plastered on her face.

"Ah! Isn't the festival so magical!" Eve exclaimed over the music, she smelled like yummy food with a stained apron around her neck and waist.

"It's so beautiful, Eve! I didn't know I loved seafood so much until now. I really want to get some," I told her, gripping her hands tightly in mine.

Eve furrowed her eyebrows, "I wish I could leave and hang out, but my parents really need me." Then she relaxed, "Come say, hi!"

I nodded, following her to booth to meet up with her parents in what felt like forever. They had been nice the first time they came over for dinner when we moved in, but I knew there was a bit more to their relationship than what they showed on the outside.

Before I said hi, Eve said something to them in Spanish making them look up to me. I shyly waved, greeting them as if it was the first time all over again.

"Ah! Lena!" Eve's mom was grinning from ear to ear, grabbing my hand with both of hers and saying hello. Her dad offered me some samples, which I couldn't say no to. They had a range of foods that contained crab which was freshly caught. I didn't end up getting to try as much as I wanted to since my stomach only had room for so much. Eve ended up pulling me away eventually, freeing me from the suction of delicious food.

"As much as I hate leaving you on your own, I should get back to working," Eve told me, making my smile slightly fade.

I shook my head, "It's no worry. Would you like anything? I can get us both a drink."

"Oh! That would be awesome!" Eve fanned herself, "It's so hot tonight. It does not go well with the heat from the oven."

I laughed at her dramatic sigh, "I'll get you something cool then."

Eve thanked me before I was sent off. I didn't even realize I had sprung a slight bounce in my step walking away and my heart felt content. It was weird how just a simple conversation with her could light up my day in an instant. Even just seeing her would be enough to make me smile for hours. Her upbeat aura was contagious. I swear, she drives me nuts.

I got Eve the coldest drink I thought she'd love, drinking mine partially on the way back as well. She was right, it was oddly very hot. Maybe it was the crowd warming up the space around us and the heat from the cooking food. But the closer I came to walking back, things suddenly got a lot colder. When I saw Eve talking with Milo, I forgot all about the temperature around me.

The spotlight seemed to be on them. I was frozen in the background, watching a couple flirt and laugh. And suddenly I was forgotten. Forgotten like I always had been and I always will be. Maybe the sight had affected me so much because I hadn't seen the two of them together in a while. Eve and I had gotten so close, I had isolated us from the rest of the world. And now this was just a reminder I wasn't the first choice. I was only a friend Eve had met this summer. Just another girl, right? I could never be like Milo at all and I wanted to understand why, but I didn't let myself. Because I didn't want this reality to be true.