𝐫𝐮𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐫, 𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝘀𝘀

𝟎𝟔𝟕

"𝙳𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝙿𝚕𝚊𝚢 𝙳𝚞𝚖𝚋"
ᴀᴜᴛʜᴏʀ
𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘩 𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥
𝕥𝕦𝕖𝕤𝕕𝕒𝕪 𝕟𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥

"THANK YOU for bringing me, P," Noah beams as she grabs her bookbag that has her overnight stuff in it.

"Of course, have fun sweetie!" Penelope exclaims and gives Noah a hug over the middle console. The teen hops out of the car and makes her way down Jess' driveway, sending one last wave Penelope's way.

"Noah, Noah, Noah!" Jess shouts excitedly as she runs out of the house, meeting the brunette in the driveway.

"What?!" Noah frets as Jess stops right in front of her and grabs her arms.

"Mom has a late meeting tonight and she's not gonna be home for another two hours!" Jess exclaims with a wide smile on her face.

"So..." Noah trails off with a smirk.

"So, we play house!" The blonde chimes and pulls Noah inside.

Penelope watches the two teens get inside safely, smiling to herself. She drives off, leaving Noah to have her fun.

"What the hell is going on in here?" Noah giggles as she is dragged into the kitchen. There is an open bottle of white wine and an unfinished jigsaw puzzle on the kitchen counter.

"I'm trying to find joy in pretending that I'm in my late twenties trying to solve puzzles over a glass of wine after a long week of work." Jess jokes and takes the bottle of wine by the handle. She takes a big swig, shocking Noah.

"Are you tipsy?" Noah asks with a smile.

"No, I can hold wine very well," Jess beams and leans forward on the counter to scan the puzzle pieces.

"What's the puzzle?" Noah asks.

"Positano, Italy," Jess replies and places one of the pieces into the puzzle, turning it until it fits into the space.

"Here," Noah says as she picks up a piece and hands it to Jess, "It goes this way next to that red one," She adds and watches Jess place the piece perfectly.

"How'd you find that so fast?" Jess asks.

"I don't know," Noah shrugs as she takes a swig of the wine as well.

Noah and Jess lean on the counter next to each other, completing the puzzle while taking sips of wine here and there. Jess watches Noah in awe as she places piece after piece. The way Jess can see Noah's brain working makes her smile to herself. When Jess looks away, Noah takes in the way Jess picks up her pieces. She is gentle and places the pieces together as if they are made of glass. She can see the frustration that takes over when Jess puts a piece down, but it does not fit the way she thought it would.

"I don't know how you've done that whole side already," Jess huffs as Noah starts helping the blonde finish her side of the puzzle.

"Can we take a break?" Noah asks.

"And do what?" Jess questions, still analyzing the puzzle pieces.

"Mario Kart?"

"And then a movie?" Jess pleads.

"Yes, then we can watch your movie," Noah giggles and grabs the wine bottle, "You need to put this away before your Mom comes home."

"Right," Jess says and takes the bottle, walking it into the garage and placing it in the recycling with the other bottles of wine that her mother had finished.