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Aurora grinned happily as she and Skye exchanged numbers, waiting for Laurel and Julia to walk over. MJ and Skye talked passionately together, laughing loudly and holding each other so they wouldn't fall.
MJ was leaving that day too, she had an audition the next morning for the theatre club and Aurora was so proud of her. "All right, don't look too happy. You're not getting rid of me forever. Your wicked Aunt Julia is still just a phone call away." Julia says, this made everyone laugh.
"Thank you for everything." Conrad says as he holds come plates wrapped in tin foil. "I'm glad it worked out." Julia says. "We should get going, too." Laurel says, motioning to her kids. "Uh, a-actually, I was wondering can-can you stay for, like, one more night? Come on. We have to help Con study for his final. It's tomorrow." Jeremiah says.
"Dude, you know I'm 18, right? Like, I don't need my mom's permission to- I need my mom's permission to study." Steven changes his sentence, noticing the look his mother was giving him. "Laurel, please. They're not gonna let me transfer to Stanford if I don't pass this." Conrad says, this made Aurora's eyes widen in happiness.
"You really got in?" Aurora and Belly both question, this made both of them look to each other. "Yeah." Conrad says, not taking his eyes off of Aurora. "Does this mean I have to sleep on a sleeping bag tonight?" Laurel questions, sighing in distain.
"Oh, we've got the motel room for one more night. You want it?" Julia questions, this made Laurel grin. "Oh, heck yes. Thank you." Laurel says as MJ unlocks her car, sitting in the driver's seat. "You're gonna kill it." Aurora says as she leans into the window, grinning at her friend.
"I know I will. Are you sure you don't want me to take you back?" MJ questions, Aurora turning back and seeing Conrad, Jeremiah, and Steven walk into the house, Belly following behind. "I have a few things I need to fix up. I'll see you soon." Aurora says as she and MJ interlock pinkies, kissing their thumbs and pressing them together.
"Be careful!" Aurora shouts as MJ drives off. Aurora watched her until she was fully out of sight, eventually walking back into the house. But when she walked past Jeremiah, she was suddenly grabbed by Conrad.
"I thought we were studying?" She questions. "Officer Belly let us have an hour of rest." Conrad says as he lies on the floor, opening an eye. "You rest." Aurora says as she kneels down, placing a hand on his face. "Where are you going?" Conrad questions as Aurora stands.
"I'll be back." She says as she walks up to the room she's been staying in, turning on her phone. Aurora had landed the role of Odette and Odile for their seasonal performance of Swan Lake, practice would start up again by next week so she needed to be back by tomorrow.
She practiced the motions, her arms and her legs, making sure her lines were straight. But when she heard a throat clear, she turned and saw Belly. "Wanna go wake them up?" She questions, Aurora nodding.
Belly walked over to Jeremiah while Aurora kneeled down to Conrad, smiling softly as she poked his face. "Wake up." She whispers, this made Conrad open both of his eyes. "Don't wanna." He mutters, this then Aurora stood up. "Conrad Fisher get up now." She says and this made him bolt up instantly.
The girl was satisfied as she walked next to Conrad towards the kitchen, sitting on an inflatable chair and covering herself with a blanket. "Yes! Mickey D's cheeseburgers?" Jeremiah exclaims, but Belly moved him away from them.
"No, no, no. No. These are a crucial part of the reward system." Belly says, this made Aurora chuckle as she watched Jeremiah look defeated, beginning to complain. "All right, okay, this is how it's gonna work. Conrad studies, he gets a burger." Belly states simply.
"What about me?" Jeremiah questions. "Conrad studies, you get a burger." Belly says, this made Jeremiah sigh contentedly as Conrad walked over to Aurora who was reading some flashcards. "It's a reward system, huh?" Conrad questions as he peers down at her, Aurora humming in confirmation.
"What else do I get?" Conrad questions lowly, this made Aurora raise a brow. "Some French fries if you're extra good." Aurora says, this made Conrad chuckle. "No need, I know you like them." He says as he grabs his headphones and laptop, sitting at the counter and studying for a bit.
Their energy was so high in the beginning, but later in the night Aurora had fallen asleep, on earbud in her ear and a textbook splayed across her chest. Conrad sat next to her, holding one of her hands as she slept, studying one of his books quietly.
"Come on, you guys. We still have miles to go before we sleep." Belly says, this made everyone who was awake groan. "All right. Fine. You know what?" Belly says as she starts playing music from her phone, Aurora slightly waking up.
"My mom loved this song." Conrad says, this made Aurora grin as she rubbed her eyes, standing up. "I agree." Aurora says, cutting herself off with a yawn. "Dance breaks are essential." Aurora says as she starts dancing, Jeremiah, Belly, and Steven joining.
"Come on Connie!" Aurora exclaims as she laughs wildly. Conrad grins as he watches her dance, flashbacks of their first summer together played through his mind.
"We had our junior prom last month." Rory says as she sits on the porch, taking a sip from the tea Susannah had made for her. "How was it?" Conrad questions, Rory shrugging. "Could have been better." She says as she puts the mug down, holding her hand out.
"Dance with me?" Rory questions, giving him her best puppy dog eyes. "I-I can't dance." Conrad says, this made Rory smile. "I'll teach you." She says as Conrad finally grabs her hand, simply holding both of her hands.
"You but one hand here." Rory says as she moves one of his hands to wrap around her waist, holding his other hand. "Now we just sway." Rory says as she and Conrad sway, Conrad adding in a twirl making her grin.
"It would have been better with you there." Rory mutters softly as Conrad brings her closer. "You really think so?" Conrad questions, this made Rory nod. Rory made have been the first to speak her mind, but Conrad sealed the deal with a kiss.
That night Aurora and Conrad laid out of the beach chairs, she stared up at the stars with a smile on her face. "Are you thinking about tomorrow?" Aurora questions, turning over to the boy. "Yeah. Venus is still an evening star. Gives me some kind of hope or something." Conrad says.
"I know you'll do more than simply pass the test Conrad. You'll be amazing at Stanford." Aurora says softly. "What if...they kick me out of Brown and I-I don't...you know, they don't want me at Stanford and-" "Then you'll figure it out. You're Conrad Fisher. You always know what to do." Aurora says as she turns back to him, noticing he was slowly dozing off.
Aurora stood up and placed a kiss on his forehead. "Get some rest Connie." She says, walking back inside to get some rest herself.
