To Be Beautiful

"You've got to be kidding me. . .!" Jackson accused, slapping a hand down upon the tablecloth with such vigor it almost seemed like he was addressing his rage towards it.

It probably would have been socially unacceptable for him to behave this way at his girlfriend's house, if not for the fact that all the adults had proceeded to the living room after Aunt Lauren finished her story and everyone collectively finished their meals.

"We're really not, I mean, I'm pretty sure everyone in this town has heard of him. . ."
I defended quickly, acting on my family's behalf.

After all Great Aunt Kim had never ever joked about such a thing.

And although I wasn't quite alive at the time to witness the artificial man leave the sanctuary of his lonely abode, I was quite sure that it still happened - that he still existed.

"Really? Well if none of you have ever seen him, how do you know he's real. . .?" Jackson reasoned, quirking a brow in particular at me.

Fumbling under her boyfriend's unsure behavior, Tatum faltered.

"Well, that is a good point. . ." She murmured meekly, suddenly lacking a backbone.

Unless she'd just been born without one and I'd never noticed until now.

Unlike my cowardly cousin, I was completely committed to standing my ground.

"If I wanted to, I could see him!" I bragged, clenching my fists.

In response to my statement, Tatum and Jackson stared at me like I was crazy.

"How?" Tatum inquired, pursing her lips.

"It'd be easy to sneak into that castle. . ." I murmured, smirking cockily at the two of them.

As a result of this, they scoffed.

"You wouldn't dare, Eleanor! Only an idiot would-" Tatum began, rolling her eyes at me quite maliciously.

Just in the nick of time, Jackson decided to cut her off.

"You'd do that? Damn girl, you've got guts. . ." He said, nudging me.

The moment a cute, boyish grin lit up his face, I couldn't really prevent the blood from rushing to my cheeks.

"Y-You really think so?" I sputtered, my quivering vocal chords clearly portraying my shock.

"Of course!" Jackson chirped, the grin never leaving his face.

Fuming at our adorable little exchange, Tatum scoffed.

"As I was saying, you'd be an idiot to go without me." She concluded confidently.

At her statement, I couldn't help but gag.

"Pft. Yeah, that's totally what you were gonna say. . ." I whispered, mocking her sudden change of heart.

In reply, she shot me a look that definitely meant something ranging from "Shut up!" to "Go die!"

"Hah, it'd be pretty bad-ass if you guys really did go explore that place. . ." Jackson suggested, his eyes alight at the adventurous possibilities undoubtedly running through his brain.

Tatum merely nodded, flashing him a sweet girl.

Obviously she was thanking Jesus for not having to follow suit with such a dangerous task.

However, I couldn't help but retain the desire to hold her to her word.

"What are you talking about, Jackson. . .?" I began coyly, turning to face him.

"Tatum and I couldn't possibly pass up an opportunity like that."

If I hadn't been protected by a nice shroud of victory high, I probably would have felt my blood run cold at Tatum's murderous stare.