Stifled: A Short Story The smell of expensive perfume and fresh herbs poured into my nose and filled my mouth. The extroverted atmosphere was overwhelming, and my brand-new dress hugged my waist too tightly for my liking. I wanted to rip that stupid thing off and exchange it for a pair of pajamas. "Millie?" Audrey said, snapping me out of my thoughts. I took in a deep breath to calm me down and straightened my lacy skirt. "Yes, Audrey?" "You seem...worrisome. What's wrong?" Audrey asked as she placed a gentle hand on my shoulder. "I'm fine. My bun is wrapped too tight," I lied, shrugging Audrey's hand off of my dress. "Maybe some food will help. Let's have some hors d'oeurves, shall we?" Audrey suggested. She grabbed my hand and led me to one of the servants, who was holding a platter of scallops wrapped in bacon. Audrey grabbed a serving plate and placed four on the plate. I swallowed. "Drey, that's not the problem." But she didn't hear me. Instead, she stuffed one of the scallops into my mouth and laughed. "You'll never know unless you try it, Millie!" she said in a sing-song tone. Quickly, I chewed the appetizer and swallowed. "Audrey, would you just listen to me?" But before Audrey had a chance to reply, the band started playing and the men and women stepped forward to dance. Audrey gasped in delight and rushed onto the dance floor, pulling me along with her hand. The ladies were on one side of the room, the men on the other. The girls giggled as the gentlemen politely stepped forward and asked a lady that struck their fancy to dance. Unfortunately, I was one of the ladies. A young man with brown hair swept to one side of his forehead approached me and grabbed my hand. "May I share this dance with you?" he asked as he kissed my hand. My nerves were shot. I didn't know what else to do except reply, "No, thank you." The man furrowed his brow. "Are you okay, miss? Do I need to call a doctor?" "I'm not a psycho!" I ripped the man's hand out of my grasp. "Stay away from me!" I quickly turned on my heel and bumped through the crowd of people. I couldn't do it. I just couldn't. I finally arrived outside in the garden and sat down next to an oak tree. My oak tree. The cool night air gently hugged my skin and calmed me down. It felt real and not stifled. I hadn't even heard Audrey sit down next to me as I cried. She wrapped her soft arms around me and whispered in my ear, "It's okay, Millie." I broke away from her. "But it's not. I don't know what to do! I'm a clumsy, stupid mess! I wish I was 12 again." "Mildred..." Audrey sighed, trying to figure out what to say. Then she continued. "I'm new to this, too, you know. Knowing if you're doing the right thing or not is hard, especially for introverts like us." That comment made me chuckle. "But sometimes, you just have to go with it. You can't worry about silly stuff like weird food or cute boys. You have to focus on the real stuff, like friendship." I watched Audrey's face for a second, then leaned in to hug her. I don't know how long we embraced, but we didn't care. We were living in the moment. We pulled apart and helped each other off of the dirt. We laughed at each other's mud-encrusted bottoms, then headed back inside to enjoy the rest of the night. Author's note: Hey guys! Thanks for reading this short story and I'll see you again soon! This story was inspired by Pride and Prejudice and 's project, Random Story. Love y'all! <3
