┍━━━━ ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ━━━━┑

chapter ten

|best friends?|

┕━━━━ ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ━━━━┙

didn't you tell nate the truth?" diana barry, asked her red-head friend. millie just listening very attentively to them as they walked together on the way to school.

today was her first day, she was very nervous and her stomach is rumbling of nervousness. her sister, of course, told her all about the mean girl named josie pye and a bully named billy andrews, who always teased the red-head.

what if i didn't grow fond of them? what if they all last to hate me?, she thought to herself. she wants to make a good impression on them, at least, on the girls. she has no interest in boys and will attend school to learn and make girl friends.

"i thought seeing the gold in the soil would be obvious. he thinks i'm a child 'pipsqueak'."

"anne, you don't have to lie to him," millie said.

"you can't possibly expect to be his equal, anne. he's an adult and a scientist," diana said, trying to comfort anne but she knew that wasn't right to say at the moment, "uh, but that's just book learning, though. and you've already proven you're good at that. but you have something else. remember when minnie may was sick and you put onions on the soles of her feet to bring her fever down?"

"that was an old wives' tale."

"it takes imagination to believe in such a thing. your imagination is a gift, anne, something that can't be learned." diana reassured her and millie nodded in agreement.

"what good is an imagination if i can't see what's right in front of my eyes?!" anne cries as she looks in one of the branches, "this branch looks like a skeleton hand. an evil skeleton... that lives in the haunted forest... feeds on the lives of the innocent!"

"anne, that's horrible!" diana exclaimed.

"oh my, it is indeed!" millie agrees.

"why are they clutching at us now? do they mean to do us harm? ghosts on the wind bearing a warning: beware!" anne said as the girls look around.

"they're coming for us!" millie exclaimed.

"we must escape!" anne said as they all fitted into a loudly laughter and ran off.

«────── « ⋅ʚ♡ɞ⋅ » ──────»

"who is that boy? why is he alone?" millie asked as he stared at the boy who seems to sketch in his notebook. they already finish putting their milk to the stream as millie caught the sight of the boy.

"that is cole, cole mackenzie. my, he looks different," anne said.

"he looks positively mature. not at all like he did before harvest," diana agreed to anne's statement. anne pulled millie and diana's hand as she attempts to go inside but millie declined, "maybe later, i'm, uh, just gonna stay here for a while. see you inside, though."

anne and diana shared a look before nodding and goes inside together. millie walked towards to the 'cole mackenzie' direction. she sat down beside him. "hello, i don't think we've met, obviously, ugh! sorry, i'm so bad at introducing myself. i'm mildred turner-cuthbert, and i'm very sorry if i'm rambling right now."

cole looked at her and smiled, "um, cole. cole mackenzie."

"it's a pleasure to meet, cole."

"it is too, mildred."

"um, also that, you can call me millie. nobody ever really called me mildred."

"alright then, millie."

and there's an awkward silence.

"we're both awkward, aren't we?" they both said at the same time as they shared a laugh.

"i think we're really making good friends," cole said as the boy smiled softly.

millie nodded and smiled back and was gonna say something, but then, a ball landed to the ground nearby them.

"hey, cole, throw the ball back, bud." the blonde boy said but cole seems to ignore it and looked at millie.

"hey, sissy!" cole finally looked at the boy, "yeah, you!"

cole grabbed the ball as he threw it at billy who caught it, "nice arm, rembrandt. wanna leave that freak's orphan sister and play?"

millie's eyes narrowed at the boy's nasty remark. cole shook his head, "no... i wouldn't. thank you, though." he said as he turns to millie, who seems upset.

"who is that idiot simp?" millie asked as cole chuckles at her name-calling.

"that is just billy andrews, he's a bully. don't mind him, though."

«────── « ⋅ʚ♡ɞ⋅ » ──────»

"girls! i want you to finally meet my lovely sister! sister, this tillie boulter, jane andrews, and josie pye." anne said as she gestured to the three girls. "i'm certainly sure you met ruby and diana!"

"o-oh, i'm mildred turner-cuthbert, just millie, for um, short. nice to meet you all," millie said as she sticks up her hands.

the girls, jane, and tillie shook her hand as the josie pye, refused and just stared at millie's hands. "are you an orphan, too? i bet you are, it's very clear to the way you dress. hm. i'm not touching an orphan's hands!"

millie tried to smile but her tears are coming down, but she insisted. she insisted to be strong. "oh, alright, then. it is a pleasure to meet you, though." she kindly answered and walk out of the classroom.

little did she know, jane andrews followed her. the girl wants to be friends with millie, in fact, best friend. even she knew that her mother wouldn't allow her.

"millie!" jane called out to the poor girl.

millie turned around to face her with teary eyes, "jane? w-what are you doing here?" millie was rather shocked that someone, except for anne, will run after her.

"a-are you alright? hey, um, i'm sorry about josie. she can be mean sometimes, no, all the times," jane said as they both giggle.

"it's okay. i'll get used to it, though. but, thank you, for running after me."

"um, it's just that... i want us to be friends. best friend, actually."

millie was very shocked, "f-friends? no! best friends? really? you want to be best friends with me?"

jane nodded shyly and millie wrapped her arms around her, "of course, jane. i would love to!"

they pulled away as the bell rings.

"shall we?"

"we shall."