𝐬𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐲 - 𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐞𝐲 𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐠𝐞

fourty-eight

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"𝙄 𝙂𝙐𝙀𝙎𝙎 𝙔𝙊𝙐 𝘾𝙊𝙐𝙇𝘿 𝙎𝘼𝙔
𝙒𝙀 𝙃𝘼𝙑𝙀 𝙃𝙄𝙎𝙏𝙊𝙍𝙔!"

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𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐋𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐀𝐂𝐊𝐋𝐄𝐘 𝐁𝐑𝐈𝐃𝐆𝐄 𝐌𝐄𝐋𝐀 𝐓𝐖𝐈𝐍𝐊𝐋𝐄𝐃 𝐀𝐆𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐒𝐓 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐀𝐑𝐊 𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐒𝐊𝐘, a myriad of bright hues illuminating the town. Brought to life by the shrieks of joy and booming music, the air felt almost electric and it seemed as though, for one night only, the entire community had come together in perfect harmony.

Mollie Wilson watched on in amusement as Riz and Cory competed intensely at a hoop throwing game, as though it was some sort of follow up to the rugby captaincy rivalry from the year before.

As Cory threw his last hoop, a serious expression took over his face, only to be broken completely as it landed flatly on the floor. He let out a groan, with the boys around him breaking out into teasing laughs.

"Pressure's on now, Riz." Lewis gasped, slapping the taller boy's shoulders. "Don't bottle it."

"Shove off, you. Let the master do his work." Riz shrugged him off and stood up straight. He sent a cocky smirk towards Mollie who was stood beside him, before effortlessly throwing the hoop without even looking at it.

It landed on the pole with a satisfying sound, causing the boys to break out into another chorus of whoops. Riz grinned as the man behind the stall handed over the prize, a large, fluffy teddy bear with a red ribbon tied into a bow around its neck.

Turning fully to Mollie, he held the bear out with a sheepish grin on his face. "For you. I couldn't have acheieved this momentous feat without you."

Mollie beamed as she took the bear and leaned forward to place a sweet peck on his lips. "My hero."

"Alright, pack it in you two!" Lewis grimaced, coming to stand between them and throwing an arm around them both.

"Get lost, like you and Hayley are any better. Could be forgiven for thinking you were eating each other's faces off sometimes." Mollie shot back, causing Lewis to recoil sheepishly.

"Shut up." Was all Lewis could say in response, rolling his eyes as he turned solely to Riz. "The boys are heading to the rec now for a few drinks, fancy joining us, mate?"

Riz's eyes lit up momentarily, before he flashed a slightly guilty look at Mollie. Noticing this, she shook her head adamantly.

"S'alright, you go. I said I'd meet Missy and Nas here anyway." She shrugged. "Missy's new fella works the carosel, and I promised Nas I'd help her interrogate him."

"Sounds like you've got a busy evening, then. Riz, you coming?" Lewis asked quickly, slapping the taller boy's shoulders impatiently.

Riz ignored him, looking back at his girlfriend. "I'll see you tomorrow, yeah?"

"'Course." She nodded with a smile, which Riz reciprocated instantly. "I'll see you then."

"Look forward to it." He smirked, leaning in for one last peck before finally turning back to Lewis who was tapping away on his phone. With a playful smile, Riz let out a dramatic sigh. "Well come on, mate, we going or not?"

Lewis rolled his eyes, shoving Riz's shoulder. With a quick goodbye, the two turned away and made for where the other boys were stood, clearly bickering between themselves as they went. Mollie couldn''t help but smile at their antics, even if they sometimes drove her mad.