autumn |KARL JACOBS X FEMALE OC|

7

it was 6pm the next day, and for tonight, they decided on a movie and hot tub night. 

they were all settled around the tv, surrounded by pillows and blankets which they had pulled out of the storage closets.

claire was sitting on the couch next to karl, the two sharing a large blanket. if she moved just an inch to her left, she'd be touching karl because of how close they were. she tried her best not to focus too much on this fact . . .

it didn't take long for them to decide on a movie.

"it's called knives out." jess was saying. "i'm pretty sure it came out last year. i've heard it's really good. wanna watch it?"

the movie sounded good, so they all agreed to it in unison.

the very opening scene began with a maid walking in on an older man with his throat slit. getting right into it, huh? claire thought in slight horror.

as the movie went on, claire could feel each time karl tensed or jumped beside her. she would look over at him and smile every couple of times he did it, and he would smile a sheepish grin back.

"what?" he whispered after the third time. "it's intense."

claire grinned at him before turning her attention back to the movie.

* * *

"i did not see that coming." claire said once the movie was over.

"me neither. it was super good though!" jess said.

"yeah, it was good. of course, i predicted the ending, but still." luke claimed, totally lying, and not even trying to hide it. 

claire scoffed. "okay buddy, sure. whatever helps you sleep at night." claire turned to karl and smirked. "speaking of which, you'll be okay, karl? you seemed pretty scared."

"i wasn't scared! the movie was intense, not scary. there's a difference."

luke strode over and wrapped his arm around karl's shoulder. "don't worry, big man. i'll be with you tonight. just let me know if you start having nightmares."

karl gave luke a deadly side-eye. "don't patronize me."

claire bit back a laugh as she watched the boys. before luke could respond, jess cleared her throat. "anyways. wanna go in the hot tub for a bit? the night's beautiful."

"ooo that sounds amazing." claire said, and everyone nodded in agreement.

claire ran up the stairs to change into her bathing suit, a new black two-piece she had packed for the trip. when she walked back down again, jess was already ready.

"towels in the same spot?" claire asked as she walked through the kitchen to the back entrance.

"yup, i'd assume so."

claire opened a hidden cabinet by the back door where stacks of towels waited. they were colourful beach towels, each one with a kiddish design on it. she picked up a purple one and was hit by another wave of nostalgia.

the purple one with the pink mermaid tail on it had always been her favourite. she thought it was so cool when she was younger. she remembered the smell of the hot tub steam when she'd get out and her mother would be waiting, wrapping her up in the mermaid towel and squeezing her tight. the memory filled her with a sentimental kind of happiness.

she grabbed the blue and white towel for jess, the minecraft one for karl, and the camo print one for luke. if her memory was correct, these were their favourites as well.

by the time she was done, the boys met up with jess at the bottom of the stairs.

"here are your towels, guys." claire said, handing one to each of them.

she guessed she picked right when she saw their faces light up with recognition. seeing them each hold their towel was amusing. her last memory exactly like this one was with 12 year old luke and his braces, a much shorter 14 year old karl, and a 16 year old jess. seeing them like this now was oddly sweet.

"thanks, claire." karl said, smiling. "ready?"

they left out the back where they were hit by a refreshing chill from the night air. jess was right, it was a beautiful night for the hot tub.

they made their way over and eased into the hot water, letting each body part get used to the heat.

"last time we were here, karl got a nosebleed in the water. remember that?" luke asked.

claire was impressed by luke's good memory. he was right, that was the very last time they were in this hot tub, four years ago. a night or two before the incident.

"oh my gosh, you're right. i completely forgot about that." claire said.

"i didn't." karl frowned, salty. "you guys all made fun of me for it."

"just a little." jess said, jabbing her brother's shoulder. "builds character."

"i mean, in our defense, it was kinda gross. i think we had every right to make fun of you for it." claire stated.

"i agree." jess said.

karl fake sniffled and wiped a fake tear. everyone laughed.

they talked for a while longer, soaking in the warm water as they told stories and laughed together.

jess looked up from her phone which she had just picked up a moment ago. she had a worried look on her face.

"uh oh guys . . . looks like it's gonna storm tomorrow." she said.

claire looked out at the dark clear sky above them. "what? but it's so clear out right now. are you sure?"

"yeah. weather is so weird." she scrolled once more on her phone. "looks like the clouds are supposed to roll in overnight, then it'll storm all morning."

"dang, that sucks." karl said. "looks like we'll have to have a day in tomorrow."

claire nodded and turned back to jess. "is it supposed to storm all week or anything?"

jess checked her phone again. "doesn't look like it. just a quick storm throughout the day tomorrow and maybe a small chance of rain the day after? nothing too bad, it looks like."

"that's good."

a storm would be a nuisance, but as claire looked around the hot tub at her friends, she knew they could have a great time in any weather. inside, outside, rain, sun. they could find ways to entertain themselves for sure. they had before, they could do it again.

once the steam began making it hard for them to breath (an inevitable hot tub occurrence) the group decided to head inside.

claire changed out of her bathing suit and took a quick shower in the upstairs bathroom. she put on her most comfortable pyjamas; long fluffy pants and a black tank top, then left the bathroom and walked down the hallway, where she saw luke and karl's door open a crack.

she made her way over and knocked gently. she opened up the door and peeked her head in, where karl and luke were each settled into their own twin bed, just getting ready for lights out.

"goodnight guys." claire whispered. "i had a lot of fun today."

"i did too." karl said. she had to admit, he looked cute tucked into bed like he was in that moment. it gave her a sweet feeling.

"me too." luke said. "night claire."

"goodnight." karl smiled at her.

she shut their door and went to her own room, got underneath her comfy blankets, and drifted off to sleep almost instantly.