Fat Girls Return

46. Carousels & Cotton Candy Roses

Elle's P.O.V

Rosie bounces excitedly near the faux-marble countertop as the employees at SMOOTH work on our orders. Theo watches her with an amused grin, sliding an arm around her waist. Rosie stills, turning her gaze to meet his, her cheeks flushing pink.

My mouth quirks, the goofy grin on my face standing out in stark contrast to my closed body language. My arms are crossed, head automatically tilting down every few moments as I find myself struggling with a surge of vulnerability, suddenly aware of my singleness.

It's been great having Theo around. But, if I'm being honest with myself, it's also brought up feelings I've been trying to keep buried the past 6 weeks.

Should I ask Theo about Peter?

'No,' I think sternly, 'we don't care about him anymore. Besides,' I remind myself with an audible sigh, 'What would Theo know that I don't? School's been out for weeks now.'

Rosie laughs as I startle, automatically yanking my arm away from her unexpected touch. I blush, relaxing as I realize it's her.
"Our bowls are ready," She grins, pointing towards mine on the counter.

We grab our orders and head outside, meeting the Everly's and Elizabeth under the large awning covering the patio tables. The adults have already begun enjoying their fruity treats, sitting around two tables pushed together. We join them, sitting down quickly before eagerly diving in to our own smoothie bowls.

I wait until we've all taken a few bites to ask Theo what he decided on.

"I'm a sucker for chocolate," he blushes, showing me his quad-chocolate layered bowl. I purse my lips, looking at my peach-mango-coconut bowl with disdain.

"Hmm, I'll have to try that next time," I mumble, feeling slightly disappointed.

Theo laughs, "You can have a bite of mine if you want; it's pretty good!"

I look up at him, surprised by his offer for some reason. "Really?"

Theo chuckles, already standing to grab a couple clean spoons. He scoops a generous amount on each before handing them to Rosie and I.

"Aww," Rosie grins, "thank you. That's so sweet."

I can tell she's fighting to hide her giddiness. Rosie and I stare at each other, silently agreeing to try our samples at the same time.

"Oh my gosh," Rosie breathes, "that is delicious."

I mumble my agreement, focused on savoring the rich flavor in my mouth.
Normally I don't have the biggest sweet tooth but this chocolate overload is just hitting the spot today. I sit back once the bite disappears, thanking Theo again.

"You can have some of mine if you want, but it's boring compared to that," I shrug my shoulder, smiling as I hold out my bowl.

Theo scrunches his nose, "I'm not really a coconut guy, but thank you."

Rosie and I laugh at his expression before turning back to our own bowls. Rosie's parents and aunt decide to loop us into their small talk a few moments later; we spend an hour at the smoothie bar before Rosie politely reminds everyone that her and Theo have a date planned.

We clean up our table before leaving, meeting back at Beth's house where we say goodbye to the two lovebirds.

"We'll see you tonight, Rosemary," Mr. Everly says, his voice friendly with an obvious undertone of warning as he glances at Theo. "You'll be back by 9, right?"

Rosie rolls her eyes, chuckling, "Yes, Dad. Don't worry. I'll be safe with Theo." She looks up at him with big doe eyes, leaning into his arm.

Huh, I guess now I know what it was like for Rosie when I pulled this cutesy crap in front of her with Peter.