"you're beautiful"

I inwardly smiled as I felt a presence beside me.

Carson had been eating with me for the past week and I hate to admit it but it was actually not that bad.

"Hey, Hermosa," he greeted, taking a bite out of his crustless ham and cheese sandwich. From the week he'd been with me at lunch, I learned that he only enjoyed eating his favourite sandwich and occasionally hot chips from the cafeteria, which he would happily share with me.

I smiled at him in return.

It's weird to see someone as talkative as Carson sitting with an almost-mute girl every day. He didn't question or mind if I didn't talk, something I was absolutely grateful for.

I had been working on the wedding invitation as well and surprising Carson would give me pointers and ideas on where to arrange certain patterns and swirls.

I was almost finished too, so I could give Cooper a call once I got home.

"So what are you drawing today?" He asked and this was the conversation starter he used every day. It wasn't boring and was effective.

"The wedding invitation," I answered, flipping the sketchbook around for him to see clearly.

"Why don't you add an Iris in there? Like the flowers?" Carson suggested, peeling back the brown paper so his sandwich was visible again.

"I-I don't know," I responded, looking at the invitation. It was already filled with mostly roses, vines and leaves. The rest were patterns and swirls. Wouldn't it be a little strange for an Iris to be drawn?

"You should, why don't you search it up? Get some ideas."

I stayed quiet but nodded.

"Where's your lunch?" Carson asked, taking another huge bite.

"I-I had an apple," I replied, stuttering on the first word. I've improved. Instead of tripping over my words twice in a sentence, it had been reduced to once. But that was only when Carson wasn't looking at me and I looking at him.

"Aren't you hungry? I usually have this sandwich, fruit, a packet of chips, maybe a chocolate bar or something." He looked at me sceptically, holding up his sandwich.

I shrugged. "I eat more at home."

He nodded. "Okay. Just don't lie to me."

"I'm not," I said, picking up the apple stump and showing him as proof. I didn't look directly at his face, I'd look at something behind him so I wouldn't get flustered.

"That's a really small apple," he noted and pointed to his sandwich. "This isn't even enough for me."

My mouth tipped upwards a little and I shrugged again. "I don't get hungry."

"Promise me you're not trying to be those girls who starve themselves to get skinny." Carson sounded so sincere and worried that I couldn't help move my eyes a little to the left, away from the tree to stare straight into his eyes.

That was a mistake and my eyes already knew so they frantically averted to the pencil in my palm. My cheeks reacted quickly and bloomed redder than the reddest rose you could have.

"Are you..." he hesitated, "trying to get skinny?"

Was I?

I eat at home, I have a full dinner and fruit. Is that not enough? I skip breakfast because I'm too lazy to chew or drink in the morning, but does that make me someone who starves themselves?

I didn't know what to say so I told him the truth. "I don't know."

"If you are, ask yourself; why? Why do I need to be skinny? Why do I have to be like other girls? Why can't I be different? Why should I want to be the same."

The way he said that so honestly made me think. Was I one of those girls? I didn't intentionally choose to not eat. I was just never hungry until dinner.

I looked down at my feet, watching them draw lines in the gravel. Then something on my chin forced my head up. It wasn't until it was too late that I realised it was Carson's hand lifting my head up. He raised my chin up so I was eye to eye with him.

Just looking into those sparkling grey eyes made my pale cheeks turn into a dark crimson colour and spread all the way to my neck and ears.

"Do you want to be the same as all the other girls?"

I didn't answer.

"Because you're different. A good different. You don't need to be skinny, you don't need to take unimaginable diets when you're perfect. You're beautiful."

a/n: vote and comment x