A Complicated Wish

Part 7

"I don't see the problem with talking to him." Cinder shrugged.

Scarlet narrowed her eyes at Cinder, "I think she has a right to not talk to him."

"I mean, he wanted to make sure that they have a set life in the future, I think it's sweet." Cinder mumbled as she shoved her noddles around her plate.

Cress watched as Scarlet and Cinder bickered over whether Winter and Jacin's relationship would last. No matter how anyone argued, everyone knew they would up married. It was so obviously written in the stars.

"Cress!" Scarlet yelled.

Cress yelped and looked up from her plate of rice.

"Lost in thought again?" Cinder asked. "It seems like you've been lost in thought a lot these days."

Cress chuckled awkwardly at the comment. "I just have a lot on my mind. I assume you guys were trying to ask me something?"

Scarlet looked at Cinder, then back at Cress. "What do you think about Winter and Jacin?"

Cress shrugged, "I talked to Jacin about it about last night. He did what he wanted." She looked at the two girls, Scarlet glared daggers, while Cinder tried hiding her emotions more. "I knows she's mad, and he is mad at himself."

Scarlet pursed her lips, "serves him right." She stood up from the dinning room table and walked to the kitchen.

Cress bunched her lips to the side. Scarlet was very protective of Winter, and everyone knew that Jacin hurt her. This meant that Scarlet had some bad blood with Jacin.

The grandfather clock from Scarlet's living room struck the hour, a jingle floating through the house.

"Should I make a plate for Winter?" Scarlet popped her head out from the kitchen.

"Uhh," Cinder thought aloud. "No, she's not usually willing to eat after therapy."

Scarlet worried her lip between her teeth, "Yeaaaah I'm gonna make her a plate. Chow mein or fried rice?"

Cinder huffed out a laugh, "Let's stick to fried rice."

Cress looked at the clock, seven o'clock, Winter should be there soon.

Every other Friday, all the girls, for the most part would meet at someone's house eat dinner and wait for Winter to come back from her therapy. Although both Scarlet and Cinder also had regular therapy visits; they often wanted to be left alone with their thoughts afterwards. Not Winter, she always wanted to have her thoughts to be thought out with other people around.

Iko this week, opted to stay the night with her boyfriend's little sister.

Scarlet came back with a small bowl of rice for Winter and collapsed back in her chair.

They had around fifteen to twenty minutes before Winter would come. The girls had fallen into a comfortable silence, all waiting for her to show up.

"I saw Arol." Cress blurted, trying to sound nonchalant.

Cinder raised an eyebrow, know Cress's past with the guy.

Scarlet looked around at the girls, seeing Cinder's reaction. "Who's Arol?"

Cinder smirked and looked away from Cress, "Her ex boyfriend."

Cress scoffed, "We never dated!"

Cinder rolled her eyes and continued, "Ok fine they didn't date. But there was a spark at one point."

"Oh, see this is what I get for being new to this group." Scarlet scoffed at herself.

"Nah, this was more of something that Jacin and Kai knew about. The rest of us heard from the grapevine." Cinder raised her shoulder in a shrug.

"Noted." Scarlet nodded. "How does Carswell feel about this?"

Cress's smiled froze, then faltered.

"No!" Cinder leaned forward. "No! He doesn't know you saw him?"

Scarlet let out a low whistle and looked away from the drama forming in front of her.

"I just haven't had time!" Cress yelled in her defense.

"You were on a call with him when you came here." Scarlet pointed out.

"Ok, ok fine." Cress gave into defeat.

"Then why-" Cinder was interrupted by a knock at the front door.

Winter came into the dinning room a few seconds later, the knock only to notify that she had arrived.

"What are you guys yelling about?" Winter asked as she walked around to hug everyone.

"Cress hasn't told Carswell that she saw Arol Dean," Cinder said teasingly.

Winter's jaw dropped as she dropped her purse, then slid into her seat. She gave Scarlet an odd look when the bowl of rice was shoved in front of her, but ate it instead of facing her wrath later.

"Ok, ok spill!" Winter said after her first bite.

"Why haven't you told him?" Cinder asked calmly.

Cress thought about the question. Why hadn't she told Carswell? She scoffed at herself for pretending like she didn't know the answer. Arol Dean was exactly what she thought Carswell Thorne was before she actually knew him.

She saw Carswell as this selfless man who always put others before him, that wasn't true when they actually started talking, but it's definitely more true now.

But that's what Arol was now, and for all she knew, he was always like that, he is a sweet, thoughtful, han-

"Holy shit!" Cinder screamed. "You like him."

"No I don't" Cress pulled at her hair. Her tell for lying.

Crap, she liked him.

A/N
So I'm feeling motivated in a way, how would you feel if I tried giving my first (and abandoned) story another go. Start fresh, a whole new plot, just starting fresh and better writing. No offense to my 13 year old self, but I couldn't and shouldn't have been writing for the world to see at that age. So just give me your thoughts and how willing you would be to read it.