You certainly complain like one.
Splash shows visible disappointment at Jewel taking his hand off of hers. It was comforting and it kept her from fidgeting too much, and ruining her nice gloves. A brand new pair of course, not the ones sheâd worn last year. That would be tacky. But she was also comforted by his explanation, and instantly felt horribly embarrassed at what sheâd assumed. She even laughed a little, cheeks pixeled pink.
"Oh for heavenâs sake, is that all?" She asks, her fingertips on her forehead once Jewelâs hand retreated. "That is odd, but I suppose if he wanted to try and impress me heâd go for the best.â She was smiling again, at least.
"To think, oh this is so silly, when I first saw you two in matching outfits I thought you were together, oh maker. Can you imagine anything more ridiculous? I may need something a little stronger than champagne to recover from that one. I canât believe I told you all that, how embarrassing. Oh and I mucked up your suit for it to, oh now I feel simply awful.â She must have been feeling better, because she wouldnât shut up about herself again.
Jewel seemed to get a brief look of understanding as she mentioned that Forte was probably trying to impress her. He hadnât considered that! It made sense though, and for a moment Jewel couldnât tell whether to feel proud of her for having that sort of influence over someone, or envious that he couldnât also say that his opinion of someone had ever mattered that much. If it were true, and he wanted to look his best to impress her, it was definitely flattering. It was a shame that things had gone sour with someone that dedicated in the first place.
"Oh, you flatter me."
Jewel couldnât help but feel a twinge of guilt at his sisterâs relief that he wasnât there as Forteâs date because, well, he kind of WAS there as Forteâs date. Pretend date or not, the fact still remained⊠but there was no reason to distress his sister over it since it wasnât even anything serious, so Jewel smiled a little, offering a dismissive wave. âNo, no, donât feel embarrassed! You can always tell me the things youâre going through, it uhâŠâ Makes us feel a little more like family, he thought. ââWell, I certainly donât mind letting you vent one bit. Letâs get out of these bushes and back to the party, hm?â
"Absolutely," she smiles at his splendid idea. "I'm sorry I overreacted. I'll let you get back to babysitting him now," she offered with a smirk, and hooked his arm in hers to lead him back around the corner of the hedge maze she'd dragged him around.
"Oh but one last thing," she stops and looks up at him, linking hands and doing the cute face she does when she wants a favor. "When this party is over, I wonder if you wouldn't mind sneaking me home with you? Not for very long, I don't really want to talk to anyone else there," she shrugs, "but running into each other once a year around everyone else we know isn't really an ideal way for friends to get to know one another." Whoops. "And especially not siblings." Nice save?
