Medicine ━━ Tyler Galpin

𝟭𝟰. golden time

CHAPTER FOURTEEN
who said this must be all for nothing

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     𝐖hen she finally came out of her room and down the stairs where everything looked twice as nice as her dorm room including the warm lighting, everybody else had already filed inside the hall. There was Tyler Galpin though, and he had his back turned to her, looking at something through the glasses of the cabinet where a few framed photos of the school alumni sat along with a few trophies.

     Then he heard her footsteps from the stairs as she begrudgingly adjusted her dress. Even by the reflection on the glass, Agnes already looked so beautiful. He turned his head to look, instantly making his face soften, relaxing every muscle in his cheeks like he'd never seen such beauty until tonight. He let out a disbelieving sound between a gasp and a scoff like he didn't know Agnes could get so much prettier than she already was.

     Despite the scowl on her face, Tyler almost looked so lovestruck when he saw her in that dress. Like he didn't have any other things in his mind. Like the compulsion of having to do much more important stuff had completely left, even the ones he had to do. Because tonight, for some reason, Agnes Turner was the only thing that mattered, and he didn't care about anything else.

     Tyler smiled adoringly as his eyes flicked to her dress and then back to her face. "W-Wow, you look so..."

     "Unrecognizable? Ridiculous?" Agnes retorted. "A classic example of female objectification for the male gaze?"

     "Amazing." Tyler finished. He smiled gently at her, making his cheeks pop and his smile lines prominent. His hazel eyes had that same twinkle in them every time he looked at her. "I mean it, Agnes. You look beautiful."

    There was a moment of silence as the both of them looked down at the object in his hand. But somebody else had taken her attention and she didn't seem to notice the look on Tyler's face as he prepared himself for what he was going to say. Then Wednesday Addams appeared too, absent of her partner, which honestly didn't surprise her.

    "Eugene?" Agnes said quietly.

     "Agnes, Wednesday, what's going on?" The boy asked obliviously. Tyler glanced between the three of them. "Um... What happened to staking out the cave?"

     Agnes tried to communicate with him through her eyes, widening them a little bit as she discreetly gestured at the tall boy beside her. Wednesday wasn't even talking either. She kept quiet, mainly giving Tyler the occasional glares, which made him a little on edge as his eyes flickered to each of them like a deer caught in headlights.

    Eugene got her message but Agnes felt bad. He sounded so upset. "Sure, I get it. Guess I'll just check out the woods myself."

     "No!" The two girls chorused, earning more confused looks from Tyler. "Don't go alone."

     "It's too dangerous," Wednesday said hardly. "Stand down."

     Eugene became quiet, looking away dejectedly.

     "We'll all go together tomorrow night, okay?" Agnes reassured him.

     The young boy only nodded, and Wednesday took that as a sign to leave, probably to go back to her date who actually ended up liking her despite how expressionless she was. Agnes sighed under her breath and quickly began walking away towards the entrance where the dance party was happening.

     Tyler looked at the girl in the navy blue dress and then back at the gift in his hand. Agnes didn't stop walking, almost like she knew he would follow her anyway. He pursed his lips before hurriedly rushing after her, leaving the box on the nearest perch with mixed feelings inside his chest.