Thread: The Southern Gothic (Agnores x BurningLyeKisses)

Click. Click. Click. The rapid, sharp sound of stilettos echoed against the linoleum floor as a tall, slender blonde appeared in the doorway. A bright smile was on her soft, pink lips, showing off white, straight teeth born from a middle school career spent wearing braces. Long blonde hair tinted with the faintest blush of red hung around a pale face in big, loose curls as her green eyes glinted beneath thick black lashes, the faintest glimmer of warm brown eye shadow darkening them. From the way that she stood, her back straight and her shoulders back, to the clothes she wore, everything about her was carefully curated to present the image of a proper young woman working a proper job. A decent, goodly image that her very being seemed to fight against. The clothes she wore were proper. A simple black pencil skirt and a flowing white top tucked into it. Clothes that screamed experience and professionalism. But the body underneath shouted about the bloom of youth. The skirt clung to a set of shapely hips and legs and the shirt didnt do much to hide the full bosom beneath it. Something about her just screamed of river banks and muddy knees, of running and tumbling in the burning summer sun. She approached Roderick quickly and reached out one delicate hand, the long nails painted gossamer pink. Afternoon Mr. Cross, she said, her voice lilting as she grabbed his hand in hers with a firm shake. A sweet, sugary scent clung to her, underscored with the faintest hint of flowers. Im Willow Polk. I heard you were coming. And from such a long way away too. Were just so excited to have a big city reporter in our humble little town. You must be so exhausted, though. And starving! Just wait until you taste Miss Suzis barbeque. Itll be the best thing youve put in your mouth in ages. And she makes the best sweet tea too. The words fell rapidly from her soft lips and as she spoke she moved subtly towards the exit doors with him. She used her body to nudge him forward, blocking him off from the women behind the counter, blocking him off from the records, even as that sweet expression never faded from her face. It was almost like she had been waiting for him to arrive. Waiting to spring on him. And in fact, thats just what she had been doing. While shed been busy typing up a letter on her computer in her little office at the back of the building, shed received a call from her daddy. He told her about a reporter coming from a nearby, bigger city and she was to distract him and keep him from prying into the private affairs of their humble little town. Shed agreed without hesitation. Reporters could mean nothing good. The last time one had come from the bigger city, it had been about nasty accusations facing the towns budget. Hed only lasted two days before hed been driven out by the hostility of the townsfolk who would do whatever they could to protect their mayor. They would do whatever they could to protect anyone in the town. For the town functioned just like a big family. And family looked out for each other, especially from outsiders. Outsiders who seemed to have it in for her daddy. She knew there had been a couple tragedies that had befallen the town recently, but she also knew there was nothing that could be done about it. It was a shame Mr. Graves had died but accidents like that happened all the time out in the woods and there was nothing that could be done about it. God took what God wanted. Thats what her daddy always said during his Sunday sermons. And Willow had seen no reason to not believe that. It had gotten her through hard times, through holding her grandfathers hand as he died, through the death of her best friend at the hands of a swollen river. Sometimes it was the only thing that got her through the day. In exchange for that peace of mind, she would do what her father asked and she would entertain the reporter until she left the town. She wouldnt let him back into her little record room. Because despite acting and dressing like a proper grown woman Willow was still only nineteen, and she relied on her daddy for so much of her world. Miss Suzi has just the nicest little place down near the river. It flooded a few years back but we were able to fix it up good as new and you cant even tell anymore, Willow said brightly, offering another little smile.