Open Spun Out

[Hester MacGillivray]

((Immediately follows this))

After leaving Spin the Bottle, Hester had only made it as far as the nearest bathroom before the desperation for privacy became too much. She felt silly, felt immature, for having so much trouble with something her classmates didn't seem to think was a big deal at all. Why did the thought of kissing someone feel so wrong? She peered at herself in the mirror for a long moment, taking in the flushed face, the wild, almost teary eyes. She had just had her first kiss, she was supposed to feel... good, feel more grown up, but instead she just felt too young and scared. And guilty, if she was honest. The girl who kissed her had been pretty, probably nice, and it hadn't been a very good kiss for Hester's part. She had been silly, ruining everyone's fun by making such a big fuss and then fleeing what was just... a game, in the end. It had been a mistake to go. It had been a mistake to leave. The whole thing was a mistake, and Hester wished she had just spent the day practicing her pipes or chilling with Big Douglas instead. Everything could have been fine, if she had just stuck to her own way...

 

[Delilah Thorne]

After her turn at spin the bottle and it seemed like she wasn't likely to be landed on again, Delilah ducked away from the circle and whispered some excuse about feeling dizzy to Brooke as she stood up. Once out of the dusty abandoned classroom she took a deep breath and was glad to have some fresh air. But not that she was out and exposed in the hallway she started to reflect about what happened. Her legs started to move and she started to walk to her dorm to try and collect herself but her mind didn't seem to want to leave her be. She wasn't surprised Brooke kissed her on the lips, especially after wimping out and having Ana Sophia kiss her on the cheek. But it still left her feeling weird. She really wished one of the boys had kissed her to see if she liked it. She wasn't sure she liked kissing girls either, but it would have been nice to have both experiences. Now she was thinking about any of the boys kissing her and it made her heart race but not in the way she thought it was supposed to.

Delilah was starting to breath fast now and ducked inside the closest room which just happened to be the lavatory. But she was quickly realized there was already someone in there and she rather have a freak out on her own. "Oh, sorry." she blurted out as she flailed her arms, trying not to fall over after stopping so suddenly. "Didn't realize- didn't know there was anyone here." she stammered. "Sorry, I can go." she said with a slight shake of her head and put a hand in front of her face to try and hide how red it probably was right now.

 

[Hester MacGillivray]

Hester knew it was silly, so silly to cry over kissing someone, but it was all she wanted to do right now. The whole day had been overwhelming, and those feelings were on their way out of her eyes whether she wanted it or not. She was only shocked out of her struggle not to cry by the opening of the door, gasping and wiping her eyes in a quick attempt to collect herself. "No, no, it's fine!" Hester said too quickly, giving Delilah what she knew was an unconvincing smile. She leaned too casually on the sink, trying to just keep up the smile and hope for the best. "I, um, I thought you were at the game?" She asked slowly, smile slipping as she mentioned it, knowing there was no way Delilah hadn't seen her embarrassing exit. "Did, uh... is it over?"

 

[Delilah Thorne]

Delilah was just about to turn around when she realized it was Hester and froze when she said it was fine and that she didn't have to leave. It wasn't exactly an invitation but she feared it would be more rude to leave now that to suffer through whatever this interaction was going to be. "Are you sure?" she asked after taking a ragged breath and held a hand to her chest and willed it to stop beating so fast. She tried to mimic the other girl's casual posture but kept her distance and leaned up against the cool stone wall by the door. "I was." Delilah answered quickly and stood up straight like she was trying to prove something. She wasn't sure what but she relaxed again a second later. Why did she care if Hester knew she left the game early? "Not yet." she admitted a bit sheepishly now. "But it was getting boring and I have better things too do." she explained with a shrug, trying to sound unbothered

 

[Hester MacGillivray]

Hester was so focused on covering her own discomfort that it took a long moment to realise how much Delilah was shifting around, how uncomfortable she seemed, how ragged her breathing sounded. As sorry as she felt for the Ravenclaw, it was an immense relief to know she wasn't the only one who had found the game uncomfortable. "Oh yeah, same." Hester smiled, feeling herself actually relax a bit. "Good thing we both found it boring and had better things to do." She said calmly, gently rubbing Delilah's arm. "Nothing wrong with that."

 

[Delilah Thorne]

Delilah looked at Hester curiously as she also said she had better things to do, except they were both in the lavatory. Were they both lying? Possibly, she decided but wasn't about to say as much. She would keep their secret. She had never really talked to Hester much over the past few years, mostly because she knew Ivy didn't like her and she was always so desperate not to do anything that would ruin any bit of favor she had with her friends. But she always seemed nice enough, if not a little...loud. Except for now. Delilah's eyes zeroed in on Hester's hand as she offered a comforting gesture but it had the opposite effect. "No...nothing wrong with that." she said coolly and felt her body tighten slightly at the contact. She shifted after the moment passed, and tried not to make it too obvious how fast her heart was racing again. "But that's just because there were so many people." she added quickly. "It just made it more awkward and lowered everyone's chances of getting picked." she shrugged and crossed her arms over her chest. The words felt wrong as she said them but she desperately wanted to believe them.

 

[Hester MacGillivray]

Hester withdrew her hand when Delilah glanced at it, feeling a little guilty. Had it been a bridge too far? It wasn't like she and Delilah were close, not really. "That's... yeah, exactly." Her heart sunk as she faked agreement with Delilah's reason for leaving. Her own reason had almost been the exact opposite, but there was no way she was saying that now. "Well, um, I should get going." Hester said cheerfully, heading for the door. "I'll catch you later?"