8 June, 1894 — Willa's Birthday Weekend, Sanditon

"It has an orange on the side, that means it's meant for breakfast," Willa joked. She had just returned from the boardwalk's bar, which was serving cocktails, with something in hand that sported three different colors in a tall, thin glass. She didn't know what was in it, but it had a silly name and the bartender had a flirtatious smile, and between the two she had been more than sold on it. It was too early to be drinking, if this were an ordinary day; they'd only finished their late breakfast an hour or so ago and wouldn't have lunch for hours yet. But this was her birthday, and she had nothing to do all weekend except lounge on the beach in a bathing suit and spend time with her friends and drink, which made it the perfect time for a cocktail.

She dropped into a seat and plucked the orange off the side of the glass, popping it into her mouth to suck out the juice. Having done that she dropped the rind back into the drink and stirred it with her straw. "I'm so glad you could make it. I don't know if I already said."

---

  

---

Gorgeous Set by Bee <3

"Seems like sound logic to me," Darling jested in return. Her own glass was full of just plain orange juice but also had a cute little orange slide wedged onto the side. She had leapt at the chance to hand out at a resort all day with her friends. She loved her family but sometimes things could get rather dour.

"I'm glad, too. It is so relaxing being here with everyone." Though given they were a crowd of young women, relaxing probably wasn't always the word for it. Not when two of their other friends had gotten into some petty row just an hour ago that seemed to have been forgotten by now.

  

---

Set by Athena

"It is, isn't it?" Willa said, beaming as though this was a compliment directed particularly at her and her exceptional planning skills for having brought them all together. In truth Mama had done most of the planning, with Willa only putting in opinions here and there, but she was happy to take credit for it all the same. She had made the guest list, and she supposed that was at least half the reason the weekend was going so well; the right mix of people, the right energy in the group. Petty squabbles aside.

"It's a shame we don't do things like this more often," she remarked, stirring her drink again and then taking a sip through the straw. "Just girls, you know? The season is always so focused on men. Looking our best for them, getting dances with them, taking calls from them. It's so relaxing to have a weekend without them."

---

  

---

Gorgeous Set by Bee <3

"I agree, it is a nice break from all the dancing and mundane conversation some men make." Her thought went to Emerett Picardy in particular and she just barely held back a shudder. She really needed to work on how polite for her own good she was.

"Do you suppose we might be able to convince the others to go for an actual swim?" Since they were a group of all girls, she did not see the harm in a little dip.

  

---

Set by Athena

"Indeed," she agreed. "I think sometimes they choose the conversation topic especially to bore us." It was said with the lilt of a joke, but she did earnestly believe some men might. Bore was perhaps the wrong word there, though; she thought some men chose conversation topics that they expected women to have little to no interest in or experience of, because it allowed them to do a lot of talking with very little interruption, and they liked to feel intelligent and important. Willa thought if they actually were intelligent and important they would not need to massage the conversation topic so intently to produce the effect of it; she tried her best to avoid those sorts.

Darling brought up swimming and Willa peered at the water for a moment, then smiled. "I believe that as I am the lady of the hour I shall be able to convince anyone of anything," she teased. "I don't know that everyone knows how to swim, but in that case they can wade. The water does look lovely, doesn't it? So calm and clear. But," she declared, sitting back in her chair and finding the straw of her mixed drink. "Not until I've finished my drink."

---

  

---

Gorgeous Set by Bee <3