Working Through the Pain

Part Two

It was the night of the welcome party and if Eleanor could've had the option to not come, she wouldn't. But no, she was the motherforking architect. She needed to make a short speech (roughly around three sentences) before Tahani took over.

Nervous, she emerged from her bedroom wearing a navy-blue bubble dress with white heels. She had straightened her hair and even slathered on some cherry red lipstick.

The blonde checked herself in the mirror once more before heading out.

She bit her lip as she stood in front of her best friend's huge mansion. Eyes flickering to the side, she smiled and walked over to Tahani, who greeted her with a kiss on each cheek.

"Hey, babe." The blonde greeted, "Things goin' steady here so far?"

"Smooth as glass." The brunette said, completely confident. Grabbing her friend's hand, the aristocrat led the young woman inside into an empty wing.

"How are you, though, darling?" Tahani asked, leading the girl down to a sofa and awaiting a response.

"How do I feel about the man I love not remembering me? Surprisingly, not that great." She admitted, "You should have been there when I called him in... I couldn't even look him in the eye."

The cappuccino-skinned girl nodded, "Quite understandable, and yet we must soldier on. You must remember, though, that you are not alone in this. All of us are with you, darling. So, whenever you need a break from all this discord, just come to one of us and we shall comfort you for as long as you need."

The blonde smiled and wrapped her best friend in a tight hug, "Thanks Tahani, you're the best."

"Yes, I am, aren't I?" Resting her hand atop her friend's, the young woman offered a sympathetic smile, "Shall we return to the event? Surely everyone is present by now."

"Yeah, I guess. Better late than never to get this speech outta the way." The shorter girl laughed, wiping a tear away as she was led into the main ballroom by Tahani.

The blonde tensed up when she locked eyes with her former boyfriend, who was standing at the back sipping champagne. He raised his glass to her and then took a swig, making her giggle.

The brunette raised her empty flute of champagne and tapped the side of it, earning everyone's attention.

"Everyone, everyone, can we have your attention? Eleanor would like to make a speech."

She let out a deep sigh, looking in any direction but Chidi's. There was no way she was ready to face him yet.

"Okay, so it's fun and stuff for you guys to come over here. This is my first neighborhood I've ever made, and I just hope you guys have a good time. Tahani, it's back to you babe." She then threw an invisible microphone to her best friend, who caught it and smiled at the blonde, launching into a speech of her own.

Chidi couldn't help but look Eleanor's way. She was standing in the corner, head ducked, halfway listening to the brunette's babbling.

The shorter girl was very attractive, he had to admit for a non-human, at least. In fact, what was she exactly? He'd ask her later. The Professor turned his head away and focused his attention back onto the aristocrat, but he could already feel eyes on him.

The speech ended two minutes later and that's when things really began to get strange. The blonde was hooking arms with Tahani, who seemed to be soothing the young woman. He heard a sniffle, and swore he saw a tear or two trickle down Eleanor's face.