you can't help but become the sun / julien baker

chapter twenty

The next day, Phoebe and Lucy were the first ones to wake up. They took Beans outside and started making a late breakfast for everyone.

"It'll be time for lunch by the time they both wake up," Phoebe teased, as she washed strawberries.

"Give them a break, Tina told me one time that Mag doesn't sleep very well so maybe she's finally getting a good night's rest," Lucy responded as she started pouring the pancake batter.

"Most likely. What even happened after we got into the car? I don't remember anything," she asked, moving the freshly washed strawberries onto a dark brown cutting board.

"The car ride was pretty quiet, we got home and I carried you to bed. JB went outside for most likely a smoke and Maggie went out a little while after to find her. After that, I went to bed," the dark-haired girl caught her friend up.

"I see, I literally almost cried last night when Maggie asked JB. Like they are so cute, I'm so glad to see happy Julien," Phoebe placed the cut-up fruit into a bowl on the edge of the counter and let Beans back into the house.

Magnolia studied Julien's face as she continued to sleep. She took note of the delicate little lines by her eyes that might've been barely noticeable then but could be seen well every time she cracked a smile.

Her chest rose and fell with each breath she took, her body subconsciously keeping her alive. You could see a part of her sternum tattoo poking out of her shirt that had ridden up in her sleep.

The last thing Magnolia observed was the black plugs in Julien's ears. "You're staring."

"How can I not when my girlfriend is Julien Baker? With this pretty face and these pretty tattoos, it's hard not to," Magnolia's voice was hushed, she brushed a few strands of hair out of Julien's face.

The shorter girl placed her hand on Maggie's hip, which caused her to momentarily tense up before forcing herself to relax again.

"Well, you're the only person who's allowed to stare at me," Julien's voice was raspier than normal because she had just woken up. Her hand moved up and down her girlfriend's side. The hand dipping and rising again every time she traced the girl's curves.

It made Magnolia's heart beat faster and faster but her brain kept feeding her lies. She tried to calm down her thoughts by not bringing any attention to the action. "So, homecoming queen?"

"Oh my gosh! Why must you bring that up? You are just as bad as Phoebe and Lucy! I'm sure during school you would've been nominated."

"I actually never was allowed to go to things like that, I always had dance competitions and after I got hurt I begged to go but I still wasn't allowed. Thinking about it now it was probably a good thing, I would've just gotten wasted after and ended up sleeping on someone's front lawn. Plus, I already had enough crowns," she chuckled.

Julien smiled, "If it makes you feel any better, I didn't go to my senior prom. I just couldn't be bothered showing up. What were dance competitions like?"

"The most stressful thing on the planet, if you were one of the better people you had so much pressure on your shoulders. Because I was one of the better ones, if I didn't win it was awful. I'm glad that I got hurt because I finally had a reason to quit. I love to dance though, not every aspect of it was bad," Maggie shrugged, she missed her dance friends and the community but it was time for her to retire.

"I understand that, can you still do all the fancy tricks?" Julien asked, making the other girl giggle.

"I think so, I'm not as strong as I was back then but I'm sure if I stretched really good and had some mats down, I could probably still do some of them," Magnolia had attempted to do some of her old tricks a few months before she met Julien, and while they weren't perfect, she could still do them. "That was the best night's sleep I've ever had, by the way."