𝟎𝟓

♕

𝑖𝑟𝑖𝑠' 𝑝𝑜𝑣

"Are you any good at it?"

I softly smiled and looked over at Ariella, "I can play a song or two."

After I was forced to dance along with her for about an hour — she decided to give me a tour of the mansion.

Eventually after opening and closing many doors, she had pulled me into a room that held a piano. It was slightly smaller than the many other rooms, but it was still a sight to see.

A piano sat in a corner that had a window placed on each side, giving whoever played the instrument a magnificent sight. However, cream colored curtains were currently pulled in front of the windows. An abstract painting of a ballerina sat above a fireplace that was on the other side of the room, and a two seater couch was in front of that fireplace.

Ariella had managed to drag me over to the piano as I took in the space.

Now here we were.

She squealed and sat up, her knees placed firmly on the bench.

"Can you play it now?" she pleaded.

I studied her eyes, the color similar to her mother's which easily pulled me in.

"Sure." I whispered and helped her get situated in my lap.

An exhaled breath left my lips as I looked over the somewhat familiar keys.

Playing the piano was another hobby that I had besides baking. Although I don't do it as often as the other, it was still something I took joy in doing.

The last time I've actually touched the instrument was a few years back in high school when I performed for a talent show.

One of the best days of my teenage years.

I pondered on the bliss that I felt during that time.

I wore a teal fitted dress that stopped just before my ankles. My feet were painted with a white gel polish and accompanied by matching ankle strapped heels that boosted my height by three inches. Phoebe had insisted that my hair be straightened which was something new because my hair was naturally wavy. Everything was pulled together with small pieces of jewelry and light makeup.

I felt confident.

It wasn't necessarily shown on my face, but I believed that my fingers were skilled enough to take control.

And indeed they did.

Hundreds of hand claps were heard around the auditorium after I finished, and a dazzling smile shone brightly on my face.

The song I played was Hearing by Sleeping At Last.

That's what I decided on playing for the little girl that sat in my lap.

I let out a breath and carefully situated my fingers on the keys, trying my best to shake away the nerves.

Although I wasn't playing for such a huge crowd as I'd done before, I still felt the need to not mess up the piece around the six year old.

Once putting more positive thoughts into my mind, I started.

As before, all of my trust was put into my working fingers, my mind still weary of my surroundings.

I started off slow, then gradually picked up the pace once I managed to remember which key made what sound. I hummed along quietly and smiled ever so often at the giggle that would leave Ariella's mouth.

Images of that specific night at the school flashed in my mind as I relived the emotions and quietness that the audience seemed to have.

It was a very nostalgic feeling.

Once I had finished I realized that I'd been crying which caused me to groan.

Music makes me so emotional.

I sniffed just as Ariella turned around to face me.

She smiled brightly, causing me to replicate the action.

Her hands reached up to clear the stray tears that left my eyes.

"That was amazing!" she yelled in obvious excitement.

This kid was something else.

I laughed, "Thank you."

♕

It had now been a few weeks since I've started babysitting Ariella, and things had been running smoothly. Today is Thanksgiving and my best friend and mother were at my apartment, helping with setting everything up for the big meal.

Aurora invited me over for Thanksgiving after I told her that I had no family living down here, other than my best fiend, and I would've accepted her invite if I hadn't remembered that my mom would be visiting my place for the holiday. Nonetheless, I decided to invite her and Ariella over instead, that way I could balance both seeing my mom and the small family that I have grown attached to.

"So, this new girlfriend of yours. I'll be seeing her today, right?" my mom spoke, eyeing me with a smirk on her face before looking back down at her timer that was nearing to only a few seconds.

I felt my cheeks and ears heat up as I blushed, "She isn't my girlfriend."

These past few weeks gave me the time to think about where I stood with my feelings towards Aurora. I did blush and stutter whenever she would be mentioned, and my heart does skip a beat whenever I see the blonde. Her subtle touches were also something that made me go into a spiral.

She had to know what she was doing to me.

However, our relationship was more friendly than romantic, mainly because I was too scared to tell the older about my feelings.

"Sure, Jan." Phoebe snorted and hopped onto the counter beside my mom who had just taken a sweet potato pie out of the oven.

I glared at the redhead and threw a spatula at her when my mom wasn't looking.

My best friend only dodged the object and smirked, resulting in me rolling my eyes and huffing in defeat.

"She's not my girlfriend. Yes, I can't deny that I feel a certain way about her, but I'm not even sure she feels the same way. I mean the woman is twenty nine years old and I doubt—" I rambled, a nervous habit of mine.

My mom looked up at me,"Twenty what?"

Two firm knocks were heard at the front door and I immediately took that as an excuse to leave.

I gulped and started walking away backwards from the duo that was ganging up on me, "I'll go get that."

Phoebe grinned while my mom glared.

When I reached the door it hit me of who was behind the piece of wood and all of a sudden I didn't want to open it anymore.

I ran my fingers through my straightened hair and tugged the bottom of my dress down, feeling as if it had shrunk in size.

"It's not nice to keep your guests waiting."

I jumped at the voice of Phoebe then glared at her as she reached over me to open the door.

God damnit.

"You are definitely something. Iris, you were not lying about how attractive she is. Oh, I could just run my hands—" Phoebe shamelessly checked out Aurora as she spoke, blandly embarrassing me.

I cut off the redhead by pushing her out of the doorframe and standing in her position, seeing Aurora's signature smirk and Ariella's smile. I felt my heart pick up in speed when seeing the two.

Aurora was wearing a long sleeved cream colored bodysuit with black trousers and a matching heel. Her blonde strands of hair were opposite of mine — curled and styled up in a high ponytail, and her hands were full of golden rings, per usual.

Reluctantly, dragging my attention away from the blonde and over to her mini me I took in her attire. She was wearing a dress the color of Aurora's top with a pair of black sandals. Her hair was also curled, but instead of a ponytail she wore it all down.

They're matching. Cute.

"Is this an outside thing or are we just not invited into your home?" Aurora voiced, breaking the silence.

My eyes snapped back over to hers and I realized how long we had been standing in this position — them longer than I.

I also realized the look Aurora seemed to be giving me as she looked me up and down. I felt the sudden need to close my thighs as her glossed over eyes studied every aspect of my body.

"No, no. Sorry about that. It's just that you both look amazing." I admitted, stepping away from the entrance and allowing them to walk in before closing and locking the door afterwards.

When we were inside my legs were immediately engulfed by a smaller frame. I smiled down at Ariella and bent down to give her a proper hug, one that wasn't meant for my legs.

After I gushed about how beautiful the six year old looked she smiled even bigger at me, obviously loving the compliment.

"Thank you, mamma picked it out for me." she informed as I lead them to the dining area, her small hand in mine whilst Aurora walked close behind.

Two of five seats were occupied by my mom and Phoebe. Phoebe greedily looked at everything that sat on the table; from bread rolls to the turkey that sat in the center, and my mom's eyes were on Aurora, Ariella, and I.

Ignoring her strong gaze, I helped the two into seats. I sat beside Aurora whilst Ariella sat in the older blonde's lap. The younger had all of a sudden became shy when seeing my mom and Phoebe, so she refused to leave Aurora's side — or lap for that matter.

"Aurora and Ariella meet my mom and Phoebe. Phoebe, Mom, meet Aurora and Ariella."

Waves and smiles went around the table after the introduction.

Then came the questions I dreaded to hear.

"Aurora, tell me about your relationship with my daughter." my mom requested with a small smile on her face.

Oh god.

The blonde softly chuckled after getting a glance at my face before answering, "We're just friends. Iris has been a major help when it comes to Ariella and taking care of her. I owe her a lot. You've raised an amazing woman, Mrs. Heather."

My mom raised an eyebrow at her response, obviously being confused after hearing the words that left Phoebe's mouth earlier.

Said girl snickered to herself.

I cleared my throat and raised my glass before kicking Phoebe from underneath the table.

"Ow." she stopped laughing and pouted as she bent down to rub her leg.

I slightly smiled in satisfaction.

This is gonna be a long night.

♕