𝐌𝐑. 𝐆𝐀𝐓𝐒𝐁𝐘

Chapter Three

Rose walked around the party for several minutes, talking with whoever would walk up to her. She danced with several other people. But soon her fun was cut short when Nick made his appearance.

"We have to go." Nick said, taking Rose's arm.

"Ah, Nicky. I'm having so much fun." Rose whined as he pulled her through the crowd.

"You need to rest Rose." Nick told her softly. "And I have work in the morning."

Rose didn't object and let her brother guide her to the front gates and down the road to their home.

"This will be your room." Nick said as he opened the door to a room at the end of the hall. "I'm just right down the hall."

"Thank you, Nicky." Rose hugged her brother. All the alcohol she had consumed was now getting to her.

"Of course, Rose." Nick smiled as they pulled away. "Now get some rest, I'll be gone by the time you wake up."

He closed the door and Rose walked to her bed. She sat down with a sigh. She let herself fall back on the bed and she was out like a light.

--

The next morning, Rose woke to the sun shining down on her face. She tossed and turned, trying to wake herself up.

Once she felt fully awake, she pulled herself off the bed. Looking down at her dress, she stood up and searched for the bathroom. She had wished that Nick had given her a tour, but she guessed it was her own fault for wanting to go to the party instead.

After finding the bathroom and doing what she needed to in there, she walked back to her room and searched for her favorite dress. It was nothing fancy, or even appealing to the eye for most people, but for her it was one of the best dresses that money could buy

It was a dark blue color, black buttons were placed close to the top of the dress. It reached just past her knees and the sleeves reached to her elbows. And pockets were conveniently placed at her sides.

She dug through her bag once again and pulled out a pair of black flats. They showed obvious use of wear. Next she pulled out an old brush and lightly brushed through her thin brown hair.

Setting he brush down on the bed, she took a step back, placed her hands on her hips and sighed. "Better now than never." And with that, she started to unpack her things.

About half way through unpacking her second bag, a knock at the door startled her.

"Who could that be?" She asked herself.

She slowly made her way to the front door, opening it to find Mr. Gatsby stood there, looking around the front yard of the small home.

"Hello, Mr. Gatsby." Rose leaned against the door, placing a hand on her hip.

"You too, Rose." He turned to her with a large smile.

"Now Gatsby, I told you, you would have to earn that right." Rose smirked up at him.

"Of course. My apologies." His smile only grew.

Rose moved her hand from her hip, to her pocket. "What can I help you with?"

Mr. Gatsby looked past Rose, into the house. "I was just wondering if Nick was around."

"He's at work I believe." Rose responded.

"Well then I guess you'll have to do." Mr. Gatsby smiled at Rose.

Rose gave him a confused look. "And what exactly is that?"

"Come for a ride into town with me?" Mr. Gatsby held out his hand for Rose to take. She stared down at it hesitantly. She had only met the man yesterday.

"I don't know, Mr. Gatsby." Rose said in a hushed voice. "I have to finish unpacking and then I promised I would clean the house." It wasn't a lie. She had promised herself at one point; as a favor to Nick for taking her in.

Gatsby's smile, and hand, fell at her words, but he quickly recovered as he came up with another idea. "Well maybe I can help you."

Rose shook her head with a smile, her hair bouncing and swaying slightly as she did so. "That is very kind of you, but I honestly don't need the help."

"I insist." Gatsby was determined.

"I'm a very stubborn girl." Rose placed both of her hands onto her hips. "I like things done a certain way."

Gatsby smirked. "That's something that we both have in common then." He placed his hands into his front pockets. "How about tomorrow? Or later this evening when Nick comes home? He's more than welcome to accompany us."

Rose smirked back. "We'll see when the time comes." She started to slowly close the door. "Goodbye, Mr. Gatsby."

When the door was fully closed, she smiled to herself and walked back to her room. She finished unpacking, and as stated before, she started to clean the kitchen. She washed many dishes, placing them on the counter to dry. She would leave them there for Nick to put away. She didn't want to put them in the wrong place.

After the kitchen and dining room were clean, she moved to the living room. It was spotless, just like the day before. With a sigh, Rose sat down on the couch. And now she was bored. Maybe she should have taken Mr. Gatsby up on his offer. It would have given her something to do at least.

As Rose sat there, she started to think about what she had seen when on her way here. The front yard could use a bit of work. So could the outside of the house, honestly. She made a mental note to buy some flowers and paint.

Rose continued to sit on the couch, thinking about how she would make the yard look with the flowers and how the newly painted house would look so much brighter and cheerier. Like someone lived in it.

She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't hear Nick walk in.

"I see you cleaned." Rose jumped slightly at her brothers words.

She turned to face him. "Yes. Seeing as I can't repay you with money for your kindness, I thought I should at least help around the house."

"You don't have to repay me, Rose." Nick shook his head. "You're my sister. You never need to repay family."

Rose smiled as her brother sat down in the chair next to her. "You're so sweet, Nick. There needs to be more people like you in this world."

"Now Rose." Nick shook his head.

"I'm being serious." Rose defended, slapping his arm lightly. "Oh, by the way, Mr. Gatsby stopped by looking for you."

"What did he want?" Nick asked, furrowing his eyebrows.

"He didn't say." Rose shrugged. "He said he might stop by later though."

They were interrupted by a knock at the door. "Speak of the devil." Rose smiled.

__________

I'm running on 5 hours of sleep and an Icee as I wrote this. Welcome To The Black Parade playing isn't helping either. But I hope you enjoyed :)

P.s. Also updating other stories today.
~Miriah