Rot & Romance (Rewriting)

Chapter 23

Fawn was awakened by knocks at her bedroom door.

"Fawn, baby?" came Mama's voice. "You up?"

Fawn sat up, rubbing her eyes.

"I am now," she quietly groaned. She got out of bed and opened her door. "Good morning. What's up?"

"We . . . have visitors I want you to meet," Mama whispered.

Fawn narrowed her eyes.

"At ten in the morning?"

Mom entered the bedroom and closed the door behind her.

"They flew in from Texas last night. They're all in the living room now."

"So . . . who are they? Friends? Family?"

Mama scrunched her face.

"A little bit of both."

Fawn sighed.

"This is all . . . just so random. And early. And I'm tired."

"I'm sorry, baby, I know this is all so sudden," Mama said. "Their visit caught me off-guard as well."

"It's fine. I . . . guess I'll go say hi. Let me go freshen up."

Mama nodded.

"Take your time."

Almost a half hour later, Fawn silently crept into a crowded living room. Mama and seven others were all sitting or standing around, talking and laughing.

And then all eyes landed on her, making her uncomfortable. It didn't help that she was still in her pajamas.

"H-Hey," she whispered.

Mama stood and made her way over to Fawn.

"Everyone, this is my daughter, Fawn," she said, placing a hand on her back and guiding her into the living room.

Everyone greeted her. There were six teens about her age and a woman who may have been a little older than Mama.

The older woman stood and made her way over to Fawn.

"Hello, Fawn. Please, forgive our intrusion."

Fawn shook her head.

"No, it's okay." She noticed the only boy in the group staring at her and pulled her robe closed. "I just . . . wasn't expecting company."

"That was an oversight on our behalf. Seems Farrah and I had a . . . miscommunication."

Fawn noticed Mama forcing a smile.

The woman extended her hand.

"I'm Jules."

Fawn took her hand and almost instantly flinched from what felt like an electric shock.

"Wow!" Jules exclaimed. "That was strong!" She shot Mama a glance. "Overwhelming, even."

"Jules, please . . . ," Mama whispered.

"Are we going to introduce ourselves?" said the boy, making his way over to Fawn. He was brown-skinned with curly hair. He smiled. "I'm Nox."

Fawn returned the smile.

"Nice to meet you, Nox."

The rest of the girls, which included identical twins, surrounded Fawn.

"She's cute," said a gray-eyed blonde. "Hi. I'm Ashleigh. Ashe will do."

"I'm Freya," said one of the identical twins. She was a curly-haired redhead with freckles. "This is my sister, Leah," she said, gesturing toward her sister.

Leah smiled. Like her sister, she was a freckled redhead, except her hair was straight.

"Pleasure to meet you," she quietly said.

A light-skinned, curvy girl waved.

"Hey. I'm Monica. I used to have a pet rabbit, too. Farrah told us about Ginger."

They laughed.

"Really, Mama?" said Fawn. "Do I need to be worried about anything else that could have been talked about?"

Mama smiled, shrugging.

"Nothing that I could think of."

The last girl finally stepped forward. She was dark-skinned with silky ebony hair. She stood before Fawn, smirking and eyeing her up and down.

Do you even know what you are? said a voice in Fawn's head.

What the hell? she thought.

"Hello," said the girl. "I'm Vivienne."

Vivienne's voice was identical to the voice she had just heard in her head.

"I-I . . . my name's . . . I'm Fawn."

Vivienne grinned.

"Yes. Of course you are."

She spun around and returned to the group.

"So . . . what brings you all to town?" said Fawn.

"Taking out the trash," Vivienne said with a grin.

"Viv . . . chill," Monica whispered.

"Seriously," Ashe added.

"A much-needed vacation from Austin," Freya said. "I just wish I knew how much colder Oregon would be."

"Yeah, it gets pretty nippy," said Fawn. "Especially in the winter. You all from Austin?"

"Just the three of us," Leah said, gesturing between herself and Freya and Ashleigh.

"The rest of us are from San Antonio," Monica said. "Auntie Jules, Vivienne and I are family. Nox is like family."

Ashe raised her hand.

"And I'm just the tag-along," she said.

"Sounds . . . interesting," Fawn said.

"What brought us together and why is even more interesting," Vivienne said.

"Okay," Mama said, clapping her hands. "I think that will be all for now. Thank you all for the visit, it certainly was a . . . pleasant surprise."

"Fair enough," said Jules, narrowing her eyes at Mama. "Come, children, let's be in our way."

"Will we see Fawn again?" said Nox.

Everyone looked at him.

"Er . . . Fawn and Mrs. Wright?" he reiterated.

Jules eyed Mama.

"I would hope so. It would be in all of our best interest."

"Alright, Jules," Mama said quietly. "Thank you. You can go now."

We're staying at Sancova Heights Hotel if you have any questions came Vivienne's voice again. I'm sure you do.

The group said their goodbyes and departed. After Mama closed the door behind them, she turned to face Fawn, sighing in relief.

"Mama . . . what was that all about?"

"Nothing you have to worry about," Mama said.