❛︎ For what it's worth Con, ❜ he then looked up at her with a blank expression. ❛︎ I don't think of you as that anymore. These past few days, I've noticed that- ❜
❛ Don't do that, ❜ he took a puff out of the cigarette, before killing it completely...
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❛ CLAM CHOWDER ❜
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Iris laid out by the pool deck, tanning under the sun in her two piece. Everyone else in the house had been occupied with something, Susannah had been sleeping, Jeremiah went out to surf, and Conrad had been anywhere but the beach house ever since they arrived.
"Iris how do you feel about clam chowder and lobster for dinner?" Susannah called out from the top of the back patio. "Sounds good. Do you need help? I'd love to help if you need it." Iris got up from the sunchair and wrapped her towel around her body. "Help from Iris? Of course I would."
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The duo spent the rest of the evening singing along to Frank Sinatra and cooking dinner. "That smells amazing," Jeremiah sniffed the aroma, walking into the open kitchen. "That's Iris' cooking," Susannah gleamed, "Could you run down to the market and buy some sourdough hon."
When Jeremiah left, Susannah took it upon herself to tell Iris about her best friend and her two kids. "So Laurel and her two kids are coming down tomorrow in the afternoon. And I know I told you that you could bunk with her daughter, Belly, or Isabel, but I want her to get to know you first before throwing you guys in a room together. So would you be okay with bunking in Connie's room for a few days? You know like the old days? If it's not an issue, of course"
Iris stopped mixing the clam chowder, "Uhm," she started, "Yeah sure, that's not an issue at all." Susannah clasped her hands together, "Great. Connie knows already, said he'll set up an air mattress whenever he gets back from wherever he is." Iris smiled, knowing she couldn't say no to Susannah especially since she invited her to spend the summer with them.
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Iris and Conrad stayed back to clean up the dishes while Susannah and Jeremiah went to bed, the mother and son excited for the arrival of their best friends. After the final dish was put away, Conrad pulled out a box of cigarettes, heading out to the pool. Iris couldn't help but know what he planned to do, so she followed him after she finished wiping down the tables.
"Isn't that bad for you?" she asked him by the glass doors. He was sat by the pool, lighting the cigarette. "Do I care?" he said plainly. She walked over to the opposite side of the pool, sitting down and dipping her feet into the water. "You should though."
"Well, I don't. It's just one stick," he said to her, taking a puff. "I remember you being so against smoking, especially during football season when you'd train and see Lukas smoking after your practices, you'd get upset that he was messing his lungs up."
"People change Iris," he said, staring off into the pool, "I changed." She watched him carefully, noticing how he looked so far yet he was only a couple feet away from her. "What happened?" she muttered to herself, but Conrad had heard from where he sat. "I quit football and I started to not care," he shrugged.
"No."
"No?"
"What happened to us?"
Conrad didn't respond to that, he just took another inhale of the cigarette. "You seem tired, why don't you go upstairs and sleep in my bed and I'll take the mattress. Mom is really excited for you to meet Laurel, Belly, and Steven. Plus I know you're not a morning person so you're really killing two birds with one stone there." Iris rolled her eyes and got up from the pool, grabbing a dried towel and drying her legs. "It wasn't a hard question," she threw the towel at him, "I just missed my best friend."
She turned the other way into the house, waiting for a second, a moment for Conrad to say something, but he didn't. But then again, it was Conrad.
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The following morning Iris woke up alone in Conrad's bedroom. The air mattress had been cleaned up, the blankets folded neatly, and the pillow fluffed nicely. Conrad was right, Iris was definitely not a morning person. As she stepped out of Conrad's room, she was instantly hit with the smell of waffles and maple syrup.
After brushing her teeth and changing into some newer clothes, Iris made her way down the stairs. "Morning Iris," Susannah smiled, mixing the bowl of waffle mix. "Morning," she smiled back, taking a seat on the chair at the kitchen island. "So what are your plans for today?"
"Well I was told that some very special people are coming to spend the summer with us, so I might hang out with them, get to know them, you know." Susannah laughed as she dropped a plate of waffles in front of Iris, "Once they arrive, you'll know that summer's began."
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SPIDEMEISTER SPEAKS
this summer is so hot omg i'm sweating by just sitting and writing this chapter 😭
