❝ You make this messed-up world look so much more beautiful. ❞ Gathering me in his arms, he pulled me close -- his lips seeking mine hungrily.
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The only thing Summer Hale has ever wanted was to live peacefully away from her secrets...
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Pain, make your way to me, to me And I'll always be just so inviting If I ever start to think straight This heart will start a riot in me — That's What You Get by Paramore
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Clarisse asked if I was managing my stress and emotions well, hinting at my mother's first death anniversary. I told her I was doing okay despite everything else, sparing no details since I was trying not to feel the negative emotions lingering inside. She also asked if all my friends had left to enjoy the long break, and I told her it was only the ogre who stayed behind.
"That's good to know," she said. "Speaking of the ogre, how are things going between you two? During our session last week, you wouldn't stop talking about him."
A wave of embarrassment struck me, and I shuffled in my seat, struggling to come up with an excuse to defend myself. I didn't even realize that I talked about him a lot during our last session. I remembered mentioning him.
"We're fine," I shrugged, remembering the conversation I had with a delirious Gray.
He said he loved me, and I could've been overjoyed with that information knowing I did feel something for him. But with the state of mind he was in, I couldn't bring myself to believe it, even when I wanted to.
"Next weekend is your mother's first death anniversary," she said, eyeing me cautiously. "Do you have any plans on that day?"
I shrugged lightly. "My grandparents suggested that I light a sky lantern. It's what we do every year for our dead loved ones, and I found a place nearby where they do it."
"Are you going to do it alone?"
"I was thinking of bringing the ogre with me."
My gaze flitted around the room, landing on a new picture frame on her shelf. My body instantly went taut.
"Are those your children?" I asked, swallowing hard.
Clarisse followed my gaze. "Yes. We took that picture two days ago. It was my daughter's birthday, and her brother surprised her with a new doll house."
