Chapter Text
Bozzo: where u at?
katti: weve been here forever
Anna smiled as she read her friends texts. Waiting in the shade of a shop front, she texted back
Anna: yh yh ill be there in 5 chill
Her bike was propped against the wall of the -she checked the shop's name and sign- ice cream parlor, and lay with its handlebars on the polished window. Anna herself leant on the wall while scrolling through her missed calls list- Longer than she would have liked.
Seymour's Sweet Delights, said the sign in pink letters like spun sugar.
Under it, another set of pink letters, the voice in Anna's head that read it sounding chocolate-sweet as it said:
Sweet as heaven, just as pure-
Yeah, right.
Anna had been attending Hampton Girls Academy for four years, and she hadn't been in even once. She'd been everywhere else- The park was her favorite, although Anne liked to try and sneak into the pub down the road. Kitty would spend hours outside the pet shop, she wasn't called Kitty for nothing.
But she'd always been steered in the opposite direction as this particular shop. "Pricey, you'd hate it." Anne would say firmly, her and her sister exchanging a strange glance.
Meaning that, in her mind, it couldn't possibly be good.
"Hey!". A girl came out from the shop, her hair done up messily in a bun, brow furrowed. "Hey, you!".
Anna scowled.
"Can I help you?" she demanded, slouched on the brickwork, not a care visible, not to this stuck-up shopkeepers girl.
The girl huffed, although didn't look Anna in the eye. "My father says I have to tell you to stop loitering. Please.". Funny, her accent wasn't local. It was sweet though, sweet like the shop itself, Anna supposed. And pretty. Unnaturally so, like a portrait.
That was besides the point, though. Her face, flushed red, raised as Anna said "And I guess only paying customers can have the pleasure of standing out here?".
"Indeed they can.". The girl smiled at her. Anna made a very conscious effort to both not be dazzled too much by the shopkeepers daughter, and simultaneously ignore the buzzing of her phone in her pocket.
Anna adjusted her bike so it was more out of the way of passers by. "So if I bought some ice cream, I'd be able to wait out here all I want?".
She wrinkled her nose. "I mean, I hardly see why you'd want to."
"It's so hot out here, but it's cool in the shade. I only stopped a minute." Anna told her, although letting her lead the way in, her skirt swishing around her legs while Anna counted her blessings. Let's see, Jesus... Thanks for this. Although, do I thank Jesus for sending cute girls my way? Hmmm, well I'm not thanking Satan, I guess
A bell somewhere tinkled as they entered together.
"If it's so hot, buy some ice cream.". The girl went to the booth closest to the door, vinyl seats in bright colours and a jukebox blaring Elvis music; The whole place reminded Anna of a cheerful ice cream Sunday. It was delicate and perky, cold enough to draw a sigh of relief from both girls.
The motto was painted on the wall too, sweet as heaven, just as pure- Anna smirked as she saw the girl slip into the seat opposite her.
This made sense.
What a sweet day it was, too.
As if realizing they'd never been formally introduced, the girl extended a pale hand and said "I'm Janey. Janey Seymour, it's nice to meet you.". Anna raised her eyebrows.
"Fancy girl." She giggled, relieved when Janey did too. "Well, I'm Anna Von Cleves. I go to Hampton?"
"Oh, one of the school girls. My sisters go there. Kitty and Anne?". Anna nearly coughed on air. "You know them?".
"Well, a little." Anna thought of the seemingly endless list of texts that kept making her phone vibrate in her pocket. All from Anne and Kitty. They weren't just acquaintances. They were her best, well, only friends. Her roommate (Anne) and her dorky best mate (Kitty).
Jane smiled politely, unaware of Anna grappling for a conversation starter. So caught up in her own mind, Anna didn't even hear her say anything, and had to ask for her to repeat herself. "What ice cream do you want, love?".
"Oh, erm..." Anna stalled, while scouring the price lists on the walls (Good God, no wonder she'd never been in here before, you'd need a mortgage and a half to buy a bowl of vanilla in this place) and with desperation said "Chocolate, please!".
Janey slid herself out of the vinyl booth, taking a menu with her and saying over her shoulder "One chocolate, coming up.".
Without thinking about it, Anna replied "See you in a second, Fancy Girl.".
"You too, Pretty Girl.".
Anna went more frozen than the ice cream. "I, oh, um, thank-thank you?".
For her part, Jane was just laughing. "Anytime.".
Under the table, Anna slipped out her phone and checked the group chats messages.
Bozzo: anna where u at now hurry up
Katti: goddam Anna, we've been at the practice field for tweny minutes, if u dont get here in a second u cant try out for the track team
Bozzo: yeaaaah coach is MAD u need to be here otherwise u cant be on the team
Katti: and then our team will deffinetly lose this year
Bozzo: rude
Katti: tell me im wrong#
Bozzo: valid
Anna winced. This try out was what she'd been building up for for weeks now. But there was no chance, she had to be here... Janey-
Anna: sorry u guys, can u cover for me? im busy
Bozzo: doing who?
Katti: u mean what
Bozzo: do i really?
Anna smirked, not even seeing when Jane approached. "Got anywhere to be?". She nearly dropped her phone.
"I- no, no. Sorry. I just- my friends, I said I'd meet them for tryouts."
"For what?". There was no 'get out', no 'go meet them, then'. Jane was quietly curious, not judging or insisting on anything.
"Oh, track team. You like sports?"
A shy smile, eyes that met Anna's, nearly making her gasp- Brightest blue she'd ever seen. Anna nearly facepalmed.
She prided herself on being, well, better than this. It was Anne who'd been quietly lusting after the school's head girl, Lina, for around four years now. Not Anna, though.
Never Anna.
It was Kitty, wasn't it, who went brick red and ran off to hide when that girl Cathy from her Maths club came along. On one memorable occasion, she dove into a thorn bush to avoid being seen. Anna had laughed at her, questioning what would be so strong as to make someone be so stupid.
Stupid. Yeah, that was a good word for it. But she couldn't help it, could she? When Jane told her, to her hidden delight, "I love track. I used to do it a while ago."
"Any good?"
"Three regional records. I'm pretty fast, what can I say."
"You're pretty, alright." Anna waited for her to say something cutting. No such bad luck.
"Smooth, Anna.". Jane seemed to be happy with Anna's embarrassment, and reached over the table to hold her hand and squeeze it tight, once. And Anna felt her heart skip one, no two, three beats.
"Thank you kindly.". Anna had to laugh suddenly, and Jane frowned.
"What?"
"Nice moustache, Fancy Girl." Anna gestured to the ring of strawberry ice cream around Janeys mouth .
"Shut it.", but she didn't mean that and they both knew it.
***
Anna came around the corner with a gasp, pedaling maniacally to make it back to school in time. She hopped off as she approached the race track, where Anne and Kitty could be seen arguing with the coach.
"Sorry I'm late!" She said, letting the bike fall to the grass. "I was real busy, I'm so sorry Coach Hall.".
The woman, short, stocky, who was in charge of the school track team, barked "You should be sorry, Cleves. You're lucky you've got some decent friends over here. And that I've seen you run before.". Her hard expression broke off, a soft glance when she saw the girl truly was disappointed to be late. Everyone else was long gone.
"There there, girl. It's fine. You do me a lap and we'll see what we can do.".
Anna gave her a nod, no emotion, but her insides were burning. She was already exhausted from being so late back, pedaling like a red blur as she got back here.
She would never run her best.
Still, what's the use of trying? She might as well.
But when she was done with her lap, she saw the pity in her Coaches face. She knew she hadn't done well. She just knew it.
She scowled as she walked back to the dorms. Anne and Kitty were up ahead, chasing each other and taking turns on Anna's bike.
"Cheer up, Clevesie! You'll be fine!" Anne called over her shoulder, as she tried to mount the bike and promptly fell off.
Anna sighed. It didn't matter. She was about as likely to get into the team as she was to marry Janey Seymour.
And both were pretty amazing, and equally impossible.
But then again, she didn't really regret her afternoons activities. Not when Janey texted her so soon.
JaneySeesMore: Hey, Anna! Just wanted to wish you good luck on your tryouts, not as if you need it! You've got this, Pretty Girl. Still, I'll see you soon. Like, maybe in a couple days? We could go to the park- I could show you how much faster I am lol. Xx
"Yeah!". Kitty pushed her sister off the bike without warning, snapping Anna out of her blissful distraction, picking it up and trying to pedal away. "You're the best runner this schools had in years."
Anne gave Anna a one-armed half hug. One smile and it was a lot less crushing. Today could still be sweet. Just like it was meant to. "They'd be dumb not to let you on the team!".
***
"Well, I can't think of why they wouldn't let you on the team." Anne was raging, even more so than Anna. "You're amazing!"
"Thanks, but it's really fine, Bo. I'm a reserve anyway. So I still have a shot. Right?".
Anna dodged Kitty neatly, as the girl in pink danced all around them, headphones in. Swaying to the music, singing wildly, "Don't know what I'm gonna do, I gotta get back to you!".
They were in Anna and Anne's room, trying to 'tidy up' before weekly inspection. The last thing they wanted was a detention.
"If you want to listen to any music, play it for all of us, Kitty." Anne shouted, pulling one of her sisters earbuds out. Kitty squealed and fell onto the heap of clothes on the ground.
A few clicks on her phone and 'Sweet Talkin Woman' by Electric Light Orchestra started playing.
Anna hummed along as the sisters started capering around like lunatics, singing only half the lyrics- they didn't know them all.
So busy were they, 'cleaning', Anna was free to daydream all she wanted about the girl in the Ice Cream shop, with the bright eyes and the brilliant smile.
"You gotta slow down (slow down), sweet talkin' woman (slow down)
You've got me runnin' (run, run), you've got me searchin'
Hold on (hold on), sweet talkin' lover (hold on)
It's so sad if that's the way it's over
(Sweet talkin' woman)".