𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐄𝐀𝐋! [𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐋 𝐆𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐀𝐆𝐇𝐄𝐑]

MOTHER'S DAY AND LIARS

THE DEAL
nine | ❝Go out with me.❞

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          "Happy almost mother's day, mom," Poppy gave her mother a small smile as she walked into the kitchen, a bouquet of flowers in her hand, "I know it was yesterday, but I got you these."

Poppy watched as her mother turned and raised her eyebrows at the gift in her daughter's hand.

"Oh. How nice of you," Elena grinned forcefully before turning back to drinking her coffee and flipping through her new magazine the had arrived in the mail earlier that day, "why don't you go ahead and put them in a vase?"

Poppy couldn't help but chuckle a little at her mother's dull reaction. Did she really expect anything else?

Without saying another word, the small girl set the flowers on the counter and opened the doors under the sink, pulling out a medium sized vase.

Once she filled it with water and put the flowers inside it, she grabbed her backpack.

"Alright, I'll see you later, mom. Have a good day," she called out.

"Yeah, you too," she heard her mother reply briefly as she exited out the front door.

As Poppy walked the familiar route to school, she had about a million things on her mind, which wasn't unusual, Carl always told her that she probably used more of her giant brain than she should.

"Would it be too blunt if I asked you why you're walking all yourself at six in the morning?"

Startled, Poppy turned abruptly once she heard the stranger's voice, not recognizing who it belonged to.

"Uh- maybe not blunt, but definitely a bit unnecessary," she told him, taking note of his backpack, she assumed he was that he was also heading to school.

He chuckled and stepped forward, so that he could walk next to her.

"Especially since you see me with a backpack, not most kids just walk around with backpacks this early in the morning just for fun. Also, it's seven in the morning, not six," Poppy informed, and yeah, Carl definitely had a point when he said she was a wise-ass.

"Whoa, you're one of those, aren't you?" The boy grinned.

"One of what?"

"Never mind- what's your name?"

"... What's yours?"

"Zach," he told her, "your turn."

"Poppy."

"Like the flower," he pointed out, "well- and the troll."

Poppy laughed. "Yeah, I guess. Do you go to Easton?"

"I do. Do you?" He nodded.

"Yeah- I haven't seen you before," Poppy admitted.

Zach gave a laugh. "Wow, Poppy. That hurts."

"Shut up, I'll actually feel bad," Poppy felt a smile on her lips before seeing the school come into view.

"No, seriously, I'm offended. Am I really that unnoticeable?"