Every String Attached | GirlxGirl

Chapter Two

"Just come, Shawn. It'll be fun, I promise."

Shawn rolled her eyes once more, hoping that this would vocalize the answer she didn't want to give. Again.

"You used to love University parties," Chance reminded her.

"Yeah, when I was in University."

She leant against their kitchen counter, looking past Chance and her pleading pout, and staring at the balcony that overlooked five floors and a parking lot. Her feet were cold against the hardwood floor, her bare legs covered in goose bumps. Normally, she wouldn't exit her room without jeans on—she'd always been insecure about her height and length of legs—but it was Chance, and she really didn't care what she looked like when around her. Shawn took another sip of the tea that was already growing cold.

"I really want to go, and I really want you to come with me. You're twenty four—almost. And I'm twenty six. We'll be the oldest, and you know that that's an advantage."

Shawn shrugged, the hand that wasn't holding her mug running through her hair. "I'm just not in the mood today, Chance."

"Come on," she begged, pressing the palms of her hands together as she stood before Shawn. She asked, "When have you ever turned down the opportunity to have an advantage?"

Chance was right. Shawn's beauty, height, and brains—everything was an advantage when it came to her. She was valedictorian in high school, captain of the softball team, and always had Hunter, her long-time and very much in love with girlfriend, at her hip. But now that Shawn was older—so much older since then, it seemed—she didn't like to use her advantages to help her succeed. She'd never bragged about her popularity in high school. She didn't show off. She didn't ensure that people knew she was smarter than them, nor did she flaunt herself in front of others. She'd never shown off, but she hadn't made an effort to hide any of her talents in high school. But now, at twenty three, Shawn was introverted, preferring the company of her best friend or a girl she'd just met at a book store or in a coffee shop rather than a large group of people complimenting her on something they thought she wanted to hear.

"Not since high school," Shawn answered, and added, "and that was a long time ago."

It was now Chance's turn to roll her eyes. "Seven years."

"That's a long time!"

"Well fine, then. We'll just go for a little bit, until you meet a girl, and then we'll all go home together. You know how much I love third wheeling," Chance said sarcastically.

"I'm not into University girls," Shawn replied.

"Since when? Shawn, you're only two years older than they are," Chance protested. Crossing her arms over her chest, she asked, "What's gotten into you? You've been saying you're not into quite a lot of girls lately. Is something going on?"

Shawn scoffed, ignoring Chance's question as she carried her mug of tea to her bedroom, where she closed the door behind her. Chance knocked, not for permission to enter, but to announce that they were, in fact, going to the party, and she'd be back at 7PM to pick her up.

After taking a long, drawn out, and way too hot shower, Shawn pulled on a pair of dark denim jeans and a sweatshirt, turning on the kettle before residing to the living room couch.

Now an empty apartment, other than her, she felt the vacancy surrounding her like cool air, the silence echoing against the walls. She wasn't used to this—even when she spent her nights and days alone, locked in her bedroom in an attempt to get her work done, Chance was always outside, babbling to someone on the phone; usually her mother, once again complaining about the amount of school work she needed to do, rather than actually completing it.