Fuzzy thinking
You stared at your phone screen, the only light permeating your dark room. Your head was still buzzing from your drink with Shane. You squinted, which made blood rush to the front of your skull.
Seb: Hey, can we talk?
You sighed, thumbs resting on the keyboard, as you wondered how you were going to reply.
Y/n: About what?
You watched as Sebastian typed from his phone, the grey keyboard icon popping up once, then stopping, then popping up again.
Seb: Sorry it ended like that :(
You sighed, remembering the fight that had broken out earlier. Sebastian said he would crash your date to help you, but now you weren’t so sure that’s what he was doing.
Y/n: Is Sam ok?
Seb: yeah. We talked it out. I’m also fine, thanks for asking. You ok?
Y/n: I wasn't the one getting punched.
You couldn’t help but feel a tiny bubble of anger swell deep in your stomach as you thought about Sebastian. He not only interrupted your date, but beat up Sam.
You tossed your phone aside, not wanting to deal with anything else that night.
~
A few days had passed. Sebastian had come to your farm in person to apologize, but it felt somewhat insincere. Sam had shown up with flowers and also apologized, which you accepted gratefully. The bouquet of pink peonies was sitting on your kitchen counter, resting inside a clear glass vase.
Now, you were harvesting your second round of parsnips, and everyone in town was buzzing about the egg festival tomorrow.
You had taken a walk to see Haley by the fountain, chatting with Alex and Penny. Haley and Alex were sitting on a bench, watching the blue water splash into the stone basin, while Penny sat on an adjacent bench. She smiled when she saw you coming, raising her thin wrist into the air and waving you over, which made her dangly gold bracelet slide all the way to her elbow. You said a quick hello to Alex and Haley, and sat down beside Penny.
The fountain made such a relaxing noise. You could feel the tension in your shoulders sinking. You closed your eyes, and listened to the soft bubble, and the slight cool breeze the fountain water gave off.
“You excited for the egg fest, y/n?” Alex asked.
Your eyes snapped open. “I actually don’t know what to expect. What’s it like?” You asked.
“Usually Gus makes a huge spread and we all eat together.” Penny smiled, her eyes crinkling. “Lots of egg dishes.”
“Eggs are good for you, too. Lots of protein.” Alex added, his brown hair bobbing as he craned his head to look at you. "I'd know."
"He really tries to act like the God of fitness" you thought. You gave a slight eyeroll to no one in particular. The birds chirped lightly in the spring air, as a soft breeze swept throughout the benches. Your shoulders relaxed again. "I can't tell if this conversation is helping me, or stressing me out more."
“I don’t care about the egg festival at all.” Haley rolled her eyes, twirling a strand of her long light blonde hair around her perfectly polished French manicure. “I just care about the flower dance.”
“I’m definitely getting more stressed” you decided. “The flower dance? Abby mentioned that to me, but I still don’t know exactly what it is…” You admitted.
Haley looked at you scornfully, her crystal blue eyes widening. You admired her for a moment, coming to terms with the fact that she was really pretty when she wasn’t trying.
“We gather in the forest.” Penny explained simply before Haley could say anything. She picked a floating piece of dandelion off her yellow button-down shirt and flicked it at the grass.
“And dance.” Alex added.
“What? You dance in the forest?”
“It’s not as bizarre as it sounds. Just a little routine. It’s a partner dance.” Penny said.
“Alex is my partner.” Haley said, in a tone that indicated defensiveness. She grabbed Alex’s arm, and he shoved her off quickly. You averted your gaze, not wanting to alert them that you’d witnessed that awkward moment.
“Okay. Can I not dance?” You asked, still staring at the grass.
“You should! I bet some people in town are just waiting to ask you.” Penny giggled, her dainty hand moving to cover her mouth. You admired how the sunlight hit her warm chestnut red hair, and how flawless her skin was as she relaxed her face again. “ Maybe I should ask Penny.” You thought as the sunbeams hit her cheeks, before snapping yourself out of getting involved with her. “You have too much drama right now, y/n.”
“Didn’t you go out with Sam a few days ago?” Haley asked.
“Kind of. It wasn’t a big deal, we were there with Abby and Maru, too.”
“But I heard they got into a fight.” Haley leaned forward, narrowing her eyes at you.
“Yeah. And?” You responded, more defensively than you were trying to come across.
“Penny might lose her partner this year.” Haley smirked.
“What?” You asked, looking at Penny. The tiniest hint of pink was creeping onto her skin.
“No, no. I usually dance with Sam, but it’s mostly because we’re both not interested in anyone, you know?” Penny said.
“I get it. Don’t worry, dance with him if you want.” You said, sliding off the bench and stretching your back. “I’ve got to get back to my work. Thanks for the chat, guys.” You said.
“See you.” Alex smiled.
You walked back to your farm, thinking about Penny dancing with Sam, and wondered how much you cared. “ This is not a problem for right now.” You decided, focusing your energy instead on the coming egg festival.
~
The next morning, you worked on replanting some seeds and took a shower, getting yourself all ready for the festival.
You picked out a spring dress that had flowers blooming all around the fabric, and braided your hair down your back, leaving a few strands out to gently frame your face.
You made your way to the town square, the spring air permeating your skin. “ Everything just feels so fresh in spring…” You thought.
You were surprised to see the town square so decorated. There were already green tables out holding all sorts of food, and a big drapery on the ground that was white, polka-dotted with pastels. Everyone seemed to already be here, and you could hear much laughter in the air. “ It’s only 9am… These people must love their festivals.” You thought.
“Hey, y/n! Over here!” A friendly voice called out to you.
“Hey, Gus.” You said, grateful for someone welcoming you. You moved towards him. He was in between two of the green tables that held enormous amounts of food. Devilled eggs, pudding, ham, scotch eggs, egg and cheese sandwiches, and quiches. “It’s 9am. Surely all of this won’t get eaten?” You asked him.
“No, it will. I’ll be running back and forth, refilling the food all day. I love festivals!” Gus smiled, his brown moustache curling upwards.
“Ah, there's a punch bowl.” You said, pointing out the red punch behind him.
“Oh, yes. Strawberry. Want some?” He asked, filling you a red solo cup full before you had even responded.
“Y/n!” You heard another voice call. You turned to see Leah and Elliot waving you over.
“Go, go.” Gus shooed you off. “Come back later and eat as much as you can.”
“Will do.” You smiled, taking a sip of the punch. It was yummy, and left you with a warm feeling down your chest. "It almost tastes like Everclear... But there's no way there's alcohol in this. It's 9am." You thought. You and everclear became very well acquainted in your party days with your college friend Cherise. She could chug the stuff, straight out of the bottle. It always burned your throat and nose too much to chug, but you still enjoyed the after-effects of the drink.
Elliot and Leah were off to the side of the center, huddled and chatting. You joined them, placing yourself in between them. Leah was eating devilled eggs off of a paper plate. You gazed around, and saw everyone you knew in town, standing in little pockets around the square. Everyone was chattering excitedly.
“You need to try one of Gus's devilled eggs, they’re the best.” She said, shoving her full plate at you. One lone egg rolled off her plate and hit the cobblestone with a plunk. "Oh, oops." Leah said.
“I’m okay for now. I wasn’t expecting this much food, so I ate breakfast.” You explained. You nudged the fallen egg with your foot, smearing whipped yolk on the ground.
“Rookie mistake.” Leah said, popping another devilled egg into her mouth. “When it’s a buffet like this, you can’t eat the day before. You have to get as much as you can out of free food.”
“Leah, that’s not healthy.” Elliot said, shaking his head. His long caramel hair was tied back in a bun today, so you could see his face more clearly. You realized how clear his skin was, and how soft his brown eyes were. He pulled a napkin from his pocket, and bent over, cleaning the eggy mess that Leah and I were ignoring. You gazed at him as he did something so selfless, his features softening as he gently wiped the ground.
“How was your date? I heard someone at the saloon mention a fight.” Leah asked between bites of egg.
“Yeah.” You sighed.
“I’m sorry. We don’t have to talk about it.” Leah said. She wiped a piece of egg yolk off her lips.
“No, it’s alright. Sam and Sebastian were fighting. They both apologized to me, but I never really got an explanation.” You explained.
"I'm sorry, y/n. That sounds terrible." Elliot said, standing back up and folding the egg into his patterned handkerchief.
“Why was Sebastian there?” Leah asked.
“He came with Maru and Abby.” You said.
“They go into the city together often enough.” Elliot nodded.
“Well, I’m sorry, y/n. That sounds terrible.” Leah said.
“Nah, it’s okay now.” You said. You took another sip of your drink. “This tastes really good for a festival punch.” You said.
“They truly go all out.” Elliot smirked. You downed the rest of your drink. “Can I get you another? I was just off to get myself a bun”
“Sure, thanks.” You handed Elliot your cup and he took it from you, a smile overcoming his face.
You chatted with Leah and Elliot for a while, and then watched the children (and Abby and Maru for some reason) participate in the egg hunt. You remarked to Elliot that it seemed unfair Abby was able to compete, as she won by a large margin. He agreed, and suggested next year it just be Vincent and Jas. By the annoyed eye rolls the adults were giving, you assumed they all felt the same.
It then quickly became 1pm, and you finally found yourself growing hungry. You snacked on those devilled eggs Leah had been talking so much about. While over at the snack table refilling your plate, Sebastian tapped you on your shoulder.
“Hey, y/n. Um… Enjoying the festival?” He asked sheepishly.
“Yep.” You answered. You and Sebastian hadn’t talked much since your disastrous date with Sam. You gave him the cold shoulder while placing a brioche bun on your paper plate.
“Want to take a quick walk around with me?”
You looked around and saw Gus eyeing you curiously. You quickly turned back to Sebastian, wondering how many people were watching and interested in the gossip. “Sure.” You sighed. You put your plate back on the table, vowing to return.
You took your first couple steps. "Why do my legs feel like lead?" You thought.
Sebastian and you took a lap around the fairground. You seemed to be getting sideways glances from everyone, and you wished the earth would swallow you up. It was almost like you were holding up a big banner that said 'LOOK AT ME'. Maybe it was all in your head, but everyone you looked at quickly looked away from you as if they had been staring.
“So, I just wanted to say ‘sorry’ again. I feel like it’s been awkward between us since the carnival.” Sebastian said quietly, his eyes glued to the ground. You looked over and made eye contact with Harvey, who looked at you curiously. You looked away.
“Yeah, the fight was a little insane, honestly.” You said.
“It was. Sam and I are cool, though, and I just wanted to make sure you knew how sorry I am. It got out of hand.”
“Why did you even fight in the first place?” You stopped walking and planted your feet firmly in the ground, turning to face Sebastian. “It seems weird, considering you guys are friends.”
“We just got a little competitive… That’s all.” Sebastian said, rubbing his neck with his hand. “I promise, it’s never happening again.”
“Why do my cheeks feel so warm?” You wondered, and then shook your head to snap yourself back to attention. “If you promise it’s not happening again, then we’re cool.”
“Cool.” Sebastian smiled.
You both went back to the fair and split up. You noticed Robin looking at you both sideways, and then whispered something quickly in Marnie’s ear. You could feel so many eyes burning into every inch of you. You felt like you were an ant under a microscope, being burned by the hot sun. “ Why am I getting dizzy? My head feels so light…”
You chatted a bit more, and he walked you back to the snack table. Sebastian then walked away, leaving you to your own devices. Your hand was shaking as you picked up your plate.
“Hey, y/n, you okay?” A soft voice came from behind you.
You fell backwards, stumbling onto a soft body that caught you. Blue hair fell over your shoulder, and you felt your face getting even hotter. “Abby…”
“Woah, easy. You didn't have punch, did you?" Abby asked, helping you stand up. She gazed at you sharply, making sure you were steadying yourself.
"I did." You said, resting a hand on the table.
"Pam spiked it." Abigail said, putting her arm around your waist. It sent jolts of electricity up your spine, and you instinctively leaned on her. "Hey, let's get out of here. You can rest in my room."
With Abigail's arm around you, she guided you towards her bedroom.
~