The Dragon Stone ↣ Riven ↢

19: I Would Never Turn You Away

''Kiss me like you wanna be loved''

'She said what to you?!', Musa exclaimed, sounding slightly angered as Rose repeated Beatrix's words of earlier that day.

Rose and her roommates were all sprawled out on the couch of their dorm living room, discussing their exams before the gala.

'She really needs to tone down the whole I'm a bitch and no one can stop me attitude. I'm so glad you beat that piece of thrash today.', Stella chimed in as she ended her sentence with a proud smile on her face.

Rose couldn't help but flinch a little at Stella's harsh words. She was glad that her friends were so supportive, and Beatrix had been getting on her nerves, though something didn't sit quite right with her about the whole situation.

'Well, I'm not really sure how I feel about it. You should've seen the look on her face. I feel kind of bad for her.', Rose argued.

'NO!', Musa shouted loudly. 'Don't even start that, Rose. She totally deserved it. Stop letting people walk over you, some people are not worth your kindness.'

Musa's words were kind of touching, and she was right, Rose thought to herself. She knew she was a little naive and that she needed to stand up for herself more though, on the other hand, she liked trying to see the best in people because some have really surprised her in a good way. Like Riven, for example.

Riven. As she had expected, he hadn't asked her to the gala, but he had texted her this afternoon to tell her he was glad he got to see her tonight since they both had been busy preparing for their exams for the past couple of days. Not much had changed between the two of them as Riven still wouldn't completely let her in on how he was feeling about her, but he still kept her close enough to keep her hoping that one day he might.

'Yeah, I guess you're right.', Rose nodded eventually. 'But enough about that. We have a gala to get ready for!', she squealed excitedly as she got up off the couch.

'I'm showering first!', Stella practically yelled at Aisha while sprinting towards their shared bedroom, causing the other roommates to burst out in laughter before they all retreated to their own rooms.

After taking a shower and doing her makeup and hair, Rose put on her red dress. She examined herself in the mirror and concluded that she loved the way it looked on her, though it also made her feel a little insecure as it wasn't something she would've normally gone for.

'Oh my!', Bloom exclaimed as she entered the bathroom. 'Riven's going to be drooling all over you tonight.'

Her comment caused a slight blush to appear on Rose's cheeks and she let out a soft laugh as she turned to look at her friend. 'Would it be bad if I really wanted him to?', she asked shyly before letting out a sigh.

She felt pathetic for seeking validation for her feelings from Bloom but when it came to Riven, her judgement was clouded. Her feelings for him were undeniable and she felt like she was constantly walking a fine line between getting strung along or him actually being interested in her.

'Of course not!', Bloom said as she came to stand next to her. 'You like him, it would be weird if you didn't want him to.'

'Yeah, I guess you're right.', Rose responded, feeling slightly better. 'Now, let's get you into your dress before we're late!'

-

Rose gasped slightly as she walked through the big double doors leading to the ballroom. It was a huge room with windows that reached from the floor to the ceiling, and it was elegantly decorated with tinsel, flowers and balloons for the event. On the far end of the room, another double door led out to what seemed to be a balcony.