#13 Reasons Why // Jessica Davis

[jesstinsource]

ALISHA BOE as JESSICA DAVIS in Winter Break 4.01

[kuro-ttsuki]

𝖱𝗈𝗆𝖺𝗇𝗍𝗂𝖼 𝖲𝗎𝗂𝖼𝗂𝖽𝖾 | 13 𝖱𝖾𝖺𝗌𝗈𝗇𝗌 𝖶𝗁𝗒

This is a short story based on the show 13 Reasons Why and the song Romantic Homicide by D4vd.

Please be warned that this story contains R*PE, s*icide, s*xual assault, s*xual scenes and m*rder

Introduction

Juliana Foley, the twin sister of Liberty High's most beloved athlete and heart throb, Justin Foley. Now this isn't a cheesy sitcom where one twin is popular, leaving the other twin in the dust of irrelevancy, both twins were born into the poor life. They had a drug addict of a mother and her river of abusive drug addict boyfriends that did not supply her addict but their endless trauma.

They had nothing but the dirty rags as clothes on their backs and each other, well until they met an angel in disguise Bryce Walker. He did not only befriend the Foley twins and basically helped build their nonstop relevancy today's high school popularity but he was their family, their everything. To Justin, Bryce was a best friend, a brother. But to Juliana, he was her first kiss, first love, first boyfriend, her... rapist; but we'll get to that last part later on.

Juliana Foley, Liberty High's cheer captain and class president, the boys there kissed the ground she walks on while the girls envy the air she breaths out. She was pure perfection at it's best, the most likely to succeed in life, they both were. So beloved, so admired but yet one person, and 13 tapes ruined that within seconds. Everything they built together came crumbling down their feet once a girl named Hannah Baker came into their life and shared their secrets. A domino effect has occurred....

Present Time | A week after her death

With how hard her heels slammed against the cold concrete as she stomped her way towards Bryce's house, she was surprised they didn't break under the pressure or even cause a mini earthquake.

The girl practically seething with pure anger after hearing Hannah's tapes, she was the last one Tony gave it to before giving it to Clay Jensen, Hannah's best friend. You'd think with what Hannah said about her, she'd be scared about the tapes coming out like the rest of the group but no. One, her tape wasn't as bad as the others, it was her secrets that was bad. Secrets that Hannah shared. Secrets like Bryce fuckin Walker.

After not only hearing that Bryce was cheating but that he raped Jessica, and Hannah. And to think she was the only one and she bared that constant pain for so long, hoping that he doesn't do it to anyone else and yet he did, behind her back even. Manipulating her to keep her mouth shut and just smile, making her think she was fucking delusional to even think her boyfriend would do that to her but no. She faced the cold hearted truth once hearing those tapes and that truth felt like a bullet to the face.

Upon hearing the tapes she realized something, not only does she know the truth but so does everyone in the friend group, they all knew what kind of monsters they were all while Bryce was the devil and yet...they chose to do nothing, to say nothing as if the tapes were a lie. How could they? Her friends? Her brother? Everyone.

How could they do that to her. Most importantly how could they do that to Hannah.

Her fist left a burning hot pain on themselves for how hard she was slamming them against Bruce's front door. She knew his every day schedule like the back of her hand, his parents are on a business trip leaving him alone and since it's a Saturday, he's definitely by himself; Saturdays were their 50 shades of gray kind of night. I know, so young but yet they fuck like sex hungry thirty year olds.

"Bryce Fuckin' Walker, Open The Damn Door!" Her voice sounded angry but really it withered with pain, afraid that she might cry in his presence about what she just learned. It felt like hours with how long the girl stood there, injuring her fist trying to get her so-called "boyfriend" to open the door. No luck. No luck for a good thirty more minutes and then hearing the sound of a door lock being unlocked made her stop immediately.

Taking a step back to fix her outfit and composer she watched as his face slowly emerged from being the door, looking all handsome with confusion written all over his face. It was hard, it was hard to hate him. After being involved with him for so long, after everything he did for her, for her brother. It was so fuckin hard to hate that face, she fell in love with that face. With that man and to finally come to the conclusion of what he truly is, is so heartbreaking.

Her lips trembled and then flattened as she tried her hardest to speak the words that were already formed and played out in her head. "I heard the tapes." Her tone was quiet, her demeanor was weak, she sounded pathetic, not at all mad as she was minutes ago. She hated how much control he had over her.

His face stayed the same, in fact it was relaxed. Not alarmed at all that his girlfriend now knows the truth. It was like he knew, no matter how he played it, the outcome would be the same, she won't go to the cops and she won't leave him. It was only how he was going to play it out to get that outcome and so, he played the clueless role. "I don't understand what you're talking about."

"The tapes, Bryce." Annoyance danced around her voice, "Hannah Baker's tapes. I heard them, all of them so don't play fucking stupid. Everything. I was right about everything, about who you are and you made me always feel stupid but now I got proof!" She was met with silence, in fact, she was met with a remaining calm composer as if he just knew she was bluffing.

This made her frustrated.

"Why are you not worried?" There was hesitation in her voice, she was confused, angry, and scared all at once. She didn't even recognize the boy she fell in love with. "I—I'll ruin you. I can turn you in, turn them in.."

"No you won't."

No she won't? Why did he say it so casually, so confident. Why wasn't he breaking? ....Why did she want him to?

"Yes- yes I will. You don't know who you're playing with." There, the hesitation sat at the base of her throat, giving him the go that she was bluffing. "No you won't." He stated again, this time disturbing her personal space, his eyes glued to her, his flatten lips twitching into a smirk. " You know why you won't? Because you don't have the tapes right now and your brother is on the tapes, so is your friend Zach, so is your bestie Jessica, everyone Jules. If I go down, we all do. Dominic affect."

Fuck he was right, he didn't even need to bring up the fact that she wouldn't turn him in because she also still love him, maybe that one was obvious but still, she was furious.

With one quick slap that smirk was whipped clean off, she couldn't help it.. She hated how confident he was, how right he was..How calm, like he acknowledged his sins and doesn't have remorse. How could he do that?

To her, to those girls. How could he cheat on her like that? How could he be the main reason a girl killed herself and he doesn't have remorse? She was disgusted. "We're fuckin done. If I see your face or if you even try to talk to me or look in my direction, I'll squeal and bring everyone down with me. If you don't have remorse, I won't either." Her words taste like venom on her tongue but that's how she felt deep in her gut. She hated him, she despised him but with all of that, at the same time it broke her.

He was her angel, her first everything and he turned out to be a devil in disguise and he's protected too, why? He's a rich white boy in America surrounded by money and jock friends that worship him like he's a god. It was sickening really.

Her heels clanked against the concrete once again, making a bitter melody as she walked herself home that night. Hannah and everything she said flashed in her head like a flashback. That poor girl, that poor pitiful girl. You know at the same time Juliana felt bad but she despised the girl too? She went after Jules brother and kept seeing him, she went after Zach and even Bryce. Oh Lord Bryce, just the thought of them two .....it felt like flashes of burning heat burning in her stomach.

Home, she didn't know why she bothered going home. She knew Justin wasn't there, home was the last place the twins would even be. Bryce was always their second home, their hideaway from hell, and now it's not even that for her anymore. Upon arriving at their shitty apartment, Juliana slowly upon the door, mentality cursing at how loud this door can be when they're trying to sneak in, luckily no one was there, well, until she closed the door.

"Where the fuck have you been?" Seth, Juliana and Justin's mom's boyfriend and well, shit bag drug dealer. One time he tried to make a move on her and Justin tried to protect her honor only to get his ass kicked. "I went to Bryce's house " Her words were short and bitter which was strike one to him, but before anything could happen amber saved the day by convincing her lousy, shit hole, white trash boyfriend back to their room, she didn't even bother to look at her daughter. But then again, she was always a boy mom even though she was a shitty mom most of the time.

Letting out a breathy sigh, she quickly ran to her room, locking the door behind her. Tears crept up as her eyes were now swollen with them. God, what the fuck is she going to do.

[cutielando]

Hey I noticed Monty DLC is one of the characters you write for that’s awesome!

I have a request Monty x fem reader

Y/n is the new girl in town when she meets Monty she’s intrigued by his mysterious but flirty bad boy nature their chemistry is unlike anything she’s ever experienced before not even with her boyfriend that she left behind when her family moved… However when they slept together y/n knew she sadly had to call off her long distance relationship with her boyfriend/childhood best friend she has to explore this thing with Monty.

my masterlist

Moving to Liberty High School had never been a part of your plan. You were supposed to finish school in your hometown and then go far away for college with your friends.

But there you were, standing in front of your new high school, backpack on your shoulder and all, ready as ever to be “the new girl.”

That was a total lie.

You were terrified.

You had heard so many bad things about the students at Liberty, how they acted towards new people and how mean they could be. And you weren’t ready for that.

Still, you put on a brave face and walked into that school with your chin held high, ready for anything that might be thrown your way.

"Hi there" a voice and a buff body made you stop in your tracks in the middle of the hall.

You looked up and gazed into the most gorgeous pair of eyes you'd ever seen, the boy looking at you with a smile.

"Um, hi" you wanted to punch yourself because of how awkward that sounded.

"Are you new? I haven't seen you around" he said, looking you up and down.

"Yeah, I just transferred, this is my first day" you explained, still mesmerized by the looks of the boy standing in front of you.

You shouldn’t be thinking like this, staring at some random dude from your new school like that when you had a lovely boyfriend back home. But you couldn’t help it. There was something about the way he spoke and the way he carried himself that you were just intrigued by.

“I’m Montgomery, but everyone around here calls me Monty” he outstretched his hand, taking yours in his and placing a kiss on it.

“I’m Y/N” your voice was faint, your gaze fixated on the way his lips felt on your skin and how good and wrong it felt at the same time.

“I guess I’ll be seeing you around then, Y/N” he winked and left before you could say anything, making sure he brushed his hand against yours in the process.

You let out a big breath you didn’t know you were holding in when you were sure he was out of earshot. You knew how wrong it was for you to be feeling like this because of a total stranger, you had a boyfriend who loved you who didn’t deserve you acting like this.

But you couldn’t help the way your body reacted to Montgomery.

♡♡♡♡♡

Weeks have passed and your infatuation with Monty only grew by the day. Your interactions with your boyfriend back at home becoming more and more rare.

You were spending more and more time with the handsome athlete, the chemistry and attraction between the two of you more and more evident as the days went by.

You were currently at a party with Monty and a few of your friends, letting off some steam from the busy week you'd had.

"How are you doing, my lovely companion?" Monty asked once he found you in the kitchen, refilling your drink.

"Feels so good to finally unwind. This week killed me" you groaned, smiling once your eyes met his.

"Did something happen back home?" he questioned, knowing you had been on rocky terms with your boyfriend for a while, just not knowing he was the cause of it.

"Nothing in particular, it just feels like I'm drifting further and further away from everything and everyone back at home" you explained, slightly leaning in to him.

He accepted your presence and wrapped an arm around your shoulders to bring you closer to his body.

"Can I help with anything?" his voice was soft, but still loud enough so you could hear him over the music.

"Distract me? Being here with you is already making me feel better" you said, not knowing the impact your words had on the athlete.

"Don't worry, I'm going to take care of you" he said before planting a kiss on your head.

By the end of the night, as you were tangled up under the sheets in your bedroom, your bodies pressed against each other and becoming one, you understood that this, right here, with Monty, is where you truly belonged, and every risk was worth exploring this new connection with him.

♡♡♡♡♡

Breaking up with your boyfriend had been far easier than you previously thought.

After the night of the party where you and Monty slept together, you talked and Monty promised to wait until you officially broke it off before starting anything. He was respectful towards your relationship, which was something you were really grateful for.

After the phone call, you called Monty to meet up, excited to tell him the news.

"Hey" Monty said as he stopped in front of you.

You had waited for him on a bench in your favorite park.

"Hi" you smiled and stood up, wrapping your arms around his neck and leaning up, capturing his lips with yours.

He froze in surprise for a second before he melted into the kiss, wrapping his arms around your waist to pull you closer.

"I gather you talked to him?" he asked, smirking once you finally pulled away to get some air.

"I did. I'm all yours, as long as you still want me" you whispered, caressing the small hairs at the back of his neck.

"I want you"

comments and re-blogs help us grow!

much appreciated!!

REQUEST HERE

[thequeenofneverland1]

Justin Foley/// The Truth Hides

Anonymous request: Could you do where clay hasn’t found about the tapes that Hannah left and so the reader and her boyfriend Justin, Alex, Jessica, Zach, monet, are talking and making a plan to get ride of the tapes and clay (the reader was friends with Hannah and Clay but stopped when Hannah and Clay started dating Hannah knew that the reader like Clay but she still went and dated Clay and so the reader cut ties with them

A/n: I switched up a lot of stuff in case you get confused

Warnings: death, slut-shaming and plotting against someone, and cussing words

You were in the gym your boyfriend Justin and your friends you all were talking about the tapes that Hannah baker left your friends and you all were trying to find a way to get them before it exposed any of you

"I said let's take him for a ride and for a drink once he's so drunk we throw him in the canyon so it seems like it was a suicide." Justin says "Besides everyone is going to believe it, since everyone is going to be like he did it because he wasn't over Hannah since they were lovers.”

“Guys, let's talk about this at my house and I'll gather everyone so we can talk about the tapes. It's better to do it at my place so no one can listen to us.” Monty looks at everyone

"At your place? why not at school?" Alex asks not understanding

“Standall Are you hearing yourself? We can't have no one finding out about the tapes. I don't know Alex if you're actually dumb or you're pretending to be one.” Monty rolls his eyes at him

Alex was about to punch Monty but he was stopped by Justin and Zach "guys we can't fight each other, we're all in this together, we all need each other unless If you want to join Clay but he's not going to accept any of you if he does find out what we did to her."

“Alright I'll let this side, but next time Monty is being a bitch he's going to get it.” Alex fumed

"Yeah whatever." Justin waves Alex off

"You guys should get going already, cheerleading practice is about to start in 45 minutes." You looked down at your watch

"Can't you guys not have us for a little bit longer? besides Bae you're the captain and Jess is the co-captain." Justin tells you

"Justin we would but Jess and I have to make new roots." You kissed his cheek

“Baby can we stay? and watch you guys? " Alex asks Jessica

“Baby why don't you go to the store to buy snacks and drinks for the meeting besides Justin and Zach has practice too. " Jessica tells Alex and kissed him before he left

"Well babe see you later." Justin pulls you into a deep kiss Zach had it to pull Justin away from you since you both were making out "save it for the private room." Zach teases

"They ride us crazy.” You laugh

“Yes they do, but we love them even if they are crazy and sometimes dumb but we have love for them. " Jessica laughs too

“I was thinking, don't you think? It's a bit crazy what the guys want to do with the tapes and Clay?” You asked

“I don't think it's crazy we need to get rid of them.” Jessica answers your questions with a smile

"That's harsh." You respond as you begin to stretch out your arms and legs

“Hannah hurt you, remember? That she dated him. She knew that you loved him, but it didn't stop her from dating him.” Jessica reminds you of what Hannah did to you months before she die.

Flash back

"Hannah, I really love Clay and I'm afraid to tell him." You confessed to your best friend about your feelings for Clay.

"Girly just tell him don't be scared." Hannah tells you with a smile

"You're right, I'll tell him tomorrow morning." You beamed

"You go girl." Hannah cheered happily

You went to school with a smile looking in the hallways for Clay your smile turn into a sad one when you saw Hannah kissing him you held down your tears as you walked past them, ignoring them as they both called your name

In the bathroom, you start crying, you couldn't believe why your former best friend would do this to you.

"You know if you were friends with me I wouldn't do that to you." Jessica said coming behind you

You looked at her through the mirror "what are you talking about?"

“I know what Hannah did to you, she's a total bitch for doing this to you.” Jessica shakes her head “that's how sluts are always trying to steal the people that we love Hannah almost tried to steal my Alex but I was smarter than her."

“I thought the rumors about her were false since she doesn't look like the kind of person that would do this, but I was wrong about her.” You shake your head in disbelief

Jessica pats your back "trust me I also fell for her stupid ass acting she was all acting nice when I was thinking that she was a nice person but in reality she's two faced."

"I thought F.M.L was forever."

“It can't be forever, the betrayer will always break the promises and the forever. "Jessica tells you, "How do you feel about being friends with me? And my friends?"

"I accept." You smile

Jessica smiled and clapped, "Perfect, now come and hang out with our friends and me they're waiting for us at the gym."

“Jess told us what those two did to you, don't worry, Jessica's friends are ours friends, you're now one of us.” Justin says as he walks towards you.

"Maybe you can join cheerleading with me since the captain is leaving. You'll make the perfect captain and I'll be the co-captain if you let me." Jessica grinned

“Jessica you have done a lot for me, you deserve to be the captain more than me.” You beamed at her

“Aww, you're such a sweetheart Maybe after cheerleading practice you wanna go on a date with me? and watch a movie at the Crestmont I'll pay.” Justin flirts with a smirk on his fact

"It's a date then." You grinned

“If you guys end up dating, we can go on double dates.”Alex winks at both of you

"Baby don't worry starting tomorrow we're going to go on double dates with them." Jessica teases

"What about me?" Zach fakes wiping his tears off

"We can get you a dog." You tease as everyone nods and laughs

"Wow Justin, your girl broke my heart." Zach fakes crying again

"My girl is right, we can get you a dog." Justin laughs as he grabs your hand to kiss it

"Wow, I see how it is." Zach playful hits Justin on his shoulder

"Wow Y/n you look gorgeous I mean you're always gorgeous." Justin compliments you with a huge smile on his face

You smile, "thank you Justy, you're handsome.”

You both walked in the Crestmont holding hands with smiles on both of your faces Hannah and Clay turned and gave Justin and you confused stares "Y/N? Justin? What are you doing with him Y/N?"

"Jensen, I don't think it's any of your business." Justin growled

"Justin, it’s our business when it comes to Y/n she's our friend.” Hannah crossed her arms

Justin raised an eyebrow, "if she's your friend why? Didn't she tell the two of you? That she was going on a date with me?”

"Is it true? That you're on a date with him? Why didn't you tell us?" Hannah chided

"Hannah because it's not your business so worry about yourself." You fumed as justin rolled his eyes

"Y/n we're your friends I can't believe you didn't tell us about your date with that jock." Clay tells you angrily

“Guys, end of the conversation just gives us two tickets. If not, then I'm going to come over and complain to the manager.”

"For what movie?" Hannah asks trying to be nice since she doesn’t want to risk losing her job

"M/N." Justin smirks as he hands out the money to Hannah

"Enjoy." Hannah hands Justin the tickets as she gives you an disappointed look

"I can't believe Y/n would go on a date with Justin Foley. He's a player, he's going to end up playing her." Clay tells Hannah

"Why don't you mind your own business Jensen just because you're jealous doesn't mean you can hate on their relationship." Marcus comes to the defense of Justin and you

"Marcus it's none of your business so don't get in." Clay fumed

"Well it happens to be about my friends so it is my business." Marcus barks

"Why are you here for Marcus? You came here to bother us?” Hannah asked annoyed

"It's not your business why am I here." Marcus rolls his eyes at them “you two need to keep your mouth shut.”

"Marcus?, what's going on here?" Justin raised an eyebrow in confusion as he was watching Marcus arguing with Clay and Hannah

"Just here defending Y/n and you from these two." Marcus points at them "they're running their mouths."

Justin rolls his eyes in frustration "Didn't I tell you guys to mind your business."

"Didn't we tell you to stay away from Y/n." Clay bickered

"The only person that can say that is Y/n." Justin grinned in hope that you will choose him

“Y/N tell him.” Hannah smiles knowing you will choose them instead of Justin

"Actually, I want Clay and You to stay away from me." You tell them as Justin let out a smile

“What did we do for you to be acting like this? You were not like this.” Clay looked over at Justin and Marcus," see what you did, you changed her."

“Nobody can change me other than me.” You folded your arms angrily.

“Do as you please, but don't cry when your popular friends used you and Justin played you. " Hannah scowled as she left with a mad Clay

Hannah and Clay were walking in the hallways holding hands with smiles on their faces as everyone that was walking stop to look at them, some of them were whispering to each other, the other ones were shaking their heads and continuing walking

“I thought we should take part in the Halloween costume competition that the school organizes for couples.” Hannah tells Clay happily

“We can if you want, so what should we dress up as?” Clay smiles

"I was thinking of Chucky and Tiffany.” Hannah cackled

"You want us to be the spooky couple?” a Clay can’t help but laugh at the idea of being the spooky couple in the competition

"Of course I bet we will win for having the best couple costume ever." Hannah grinned at the thought of winning

Justin and you and the rest of the school were at the gym for the Halloween costume competition as everyone was cheering for Justin and you as the two of you began to dry humping each other

“Ladies and gents, I think we have a winner!! Justin and Y/n as Sexy Punk rockers!!” Courtney announce happily on the microphone

Everyone got out from their seats to congratulate you both for the win

“It’s actually Sid Vicious and Nancy Spungen.” Clay whispers annoyed and rolling his eyes

End of the flashback

“I know a way to get rid of Clay and those stupid tapes.” You smirked, trying to hide your worried face

Jesscia smiles, “what’s your plan?”

You smile back, “leave it to me.”

[marleyelona]

Does anyone till like 13 Reasons Why? And if I posted my fanfic of the show on here would anyone read it?

[frogsare-friends]

justin foley was done SO dirty. i'm so mad. fuck canon he's alive and he and jessica are THRIVING.

[sithdaya]

📸 Jessica’s Camera Roll 

September 2016 - August 2017

did i really google search the 13rw season 1 in chronological order so i could make this?

yes.

[cutslikeadiamond]

[misschanadlerbong]

Chapter 13 Pt.1 - Perfect

Summary: Just senior prom.

Warnings: none.

Genre: Fluff with some angst towards the end.

Word Count: 2.9k

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Finally, the day of prom came, and you were all set to get ready and dance your ass off tonight. Jessica was also at your place because you needed her to help with makeup, hair, and stuff you had no idea about. Both the boys were going to pick you up from your place.

Jessica asked in confirmation “Dress?”

“Check!”

“Hair accessories?”

“Check!”

And…did you put a straightener to heat?”

“Oh, Jess do you realize that you are going through this checklist for the fifth time? It is all good even if we leave something out that we are not, so what’s the big deal? Isn’t today all about having fun just chill babe?”

“Y/N this is our last school dance it has to be perfect.” she declared.

You could never win against Jessica in a matter like this, so you just rolled your eyes and followed everything that Jessica told you about. You both went to a full regime of skin care and then she did your makeup and hair.

The theme of the senior prom was ‘Masquerade Ball’ and you picked up a perfect corset dress. It was a sequin dress the corset was black with a tint of golden to it and the skirt was golden with a tint of black at the very bottom of it with embroidered flower patterns. It also had a ribbon that went around your waist and tied into a bow on your back.

You had a last look in the mirror before going into the living room where your parents were waiting to see you. You looked at yourself and, you had to admit, you looked like a goddamn princess and the glow added to your face thinking about Clay made you look even better.

You heard the doorbell, “Honey your dates are here.” your mom shouted from the living room.

You and Jessica walked into the living room and seeing you both your mother exclaimed “Oh sweet Jesus! Don’t you two look beautiful?”

Your father was too startled to say anything, he was shocked at the sight in front of him. He always saw you like his little girl who needed her father’s help in everything but now he saw a well-raised beautiful young woman. Seeing you, your father shed a tear as he was overwhelmed, he tried his best to hide but could not.

You walked up to your dad and said “Aw Dad!” and gave him a warm hug.

Your eyes met Clay. He was wearing a tuxedo and was looking smoking hot. You walk over toward Clay and said, “Who knew my Nerd could pull off a tuxedo?” Clay simply grinned. He was staring deep into your eyes it seemed like he wanted to say something but was not letting it out “What?” you asked.

“You look…” he sighed “Seraphic!” he finally said.

Justin sauntered to Jessica, gave her a sweet kiss, and said: “Hello, gorgeous!” He then turned towards you and said “And Y/N you, you look terrific. I have never seen you like this before.”

Your lips curved into a smile and said, “Thanks Justin, you look great too.”

“Um Y/N I got something for you,” said Clay offering a corsage. You stretched your hand and allowed Clay to put a corsage on your wrist.

“Oh my god, Orchid? This is beautiful! I got something for you too Jensen. Mom, can you pass that?” you asked your mom to pass a boutonniere you especially got for Clay. You pinned the boutonniere to his jacket.”

“Shall we princess?” asked Clay with courtesy. But your father stopped you both.

“So, Clay Jensen, right?” your father questioned.

“Yes, sir.”

“Bring her back till 11, okay?” he demanded.

“Yes, sir,” Clay said like an obedient boyfriend.

You all walked out of the house stopping on the porch you asked Clay “So where is our ride? I mean I asked you out, the least you could do is get us a Limo. Right, Jess?”

Jessica nodded in agreement and raised her eyebrow at Justin in question.

“Okay, I deserve that. Justin and Jessica are going with Charlie and Alex in an actual Limo. I have a different plan for us.” Said Clay.

“Oh really? What is it?” You jumped with excitement.

“I know what you love more than a Limo, this!” said Clay pointing his index finger towards Tony’s Mustang.

“Oh, my fucking god! Tony’s Mustang? How did you convince him?” you asked in disbelief.

“Well, seems like he’d do anything for his best friend he knows how important you are to me and how much you love this car, so he agreed.” Clay offered his hand and asked, “Shall we madame?”

You held his hand and replied, “Oui, monsieur.”

You all arrived at the venue decided by your school. It was a big ballroom with a dancing space near the DJ and there were many round tables arranged for the seating. The room was decorated with every shade of white flowers. Exquisite chandeliers hung above the ceiling giving the room a royal aesthetic.

You and the gang took some drinks and hit the dance floor. You danced to many songs. Tony did the job just right as a DJ, you tried so hard to convince him to join the prom with everybody but being a DJ was his escape from socializing and dancing.

You and Jessica danced your ass off to the song ‘Best Friend’ by Doja Cat and Saweetie and decided to take some rest. Clay was just standing in one corner smiling at you as you danced. You walked up to him and urged “Oh come on Clay, we are at our Prom, we are supposed to Dance you know. Haven’t you read about proms in the library?”

“Ha-ha very funny. I can’t dance. Plus, it is such a pleasure seeing you dancing.”

You pouted at his response and to make it up to you he pecked your lips and offered you a drink.

You both were standing in one corner and talking and observing others. Your eyes fell on Charlie and Alex dancing to a slow song. They both were wearing tuxedos with matching boutonnieres pinned to their jackets and held each other while moving swiftly to the beats of the song. Then you saw Jessica and Justin dancing just beside them, it felt like love was in the air.

As you both were enjoying watching and talking a tall dark-haired boy approached you both.

“Hey Y/N, you look amazing and you too Clay you look fine in that tux,” he said.

“Hi, Zach. Thanks! You don’t look so bad yourself either.” you smiled.

“Um, Clay…I was wondering if I can borrow your date for a dance?”

You looked at Clay and said, “I don’t know Zach, I am pretty tired.”

“Come on Y/N it’s just one dance I am asking for, please?” Zach insisted.

Clay seemed like he had no problem with you two dancing together, “No, Y/N if you want to, then please. I will be right here watching you.” said Clay.

You nodded and proceeded towards the dance floor with Zach. Song ‘The Way, I Loved You’ by Taylor Swift started playing in the background and you both found your rhythm to dance. You held one of Zach’s hands and his other hand rested on your waist. Zach swirled you around a few times and you both were back to facing each other.

“Y/N I’d like to say something,” asked Zach.

“Yeah?”

“See I know we got off on the wrong foot. But I miss my time with you. I regret saying whatever I said. The thing was that I was too scared to put my game in jeopardy. But I didn’t realize that you were equally as important…” you cut him off “But Zach…”

“No, please listen to me. Breaking up with you was a huge mistake, will you ever be able to forgive me? I know you are with Clay now so the least I could ask for is forgiveness” he asked with innocence in his eyes.

“Of course, Zach, I already forgave you a long time ago. To be honest, I am grateful to you, if you never broke up with me, I would have never realized that I had feelings for Clay, and now hearing all those words from you made me realize exactly how I feel about him. So, thank you.”

While you both were dancing Justin and Jessica approached Clay and Justin asked “Dude, what is she doing with Zach?”

“Zach wanted to dance with Y/N so they’re dancing.”

“And you let her?” asked Justin sounding annoyed.

“Yeah, and she does not need my permission I am her boyfriend, not her master or anything and additionally they are just dancing what is wrong with that? It’s prom after all” replied Clay.

“Clay, you don’t let your serious girlfriend dance with her ex with whom the things were still complicated…”

“Oh yeah, Clay sure they are dancing, and look at them so adorable right? Whereas it should be you looking into her eyes the way Zach is. But I am sure this dance will not stir Y/N’s feelings back towards Zach.” Jessica said sarcastically.

Clay started to feel insecure and decided to make a move. He walked up to you as you expected him to. The only thing that could provoke Clay was jealousy and Jess played that card just right.

As soon as he held your hand to dance Tony changed the slow song to some rock music “Seriously Tony?!” you yelled in frustration.

“Hey, it’s okay, we can just jump around like these crazy people here, right?”

A grin took over your pout and Clay and you jumped around the dance floor feeling yourself and being lost in the music.

You and Clay found a seat for yourself to take a break and helped yourself with some food.

“Y/N? Can I talk to you?” a familiar voice came from behind you.

Before you could say anything, Clay howled “What the hell Bryce?”

“Hey man, I just wanna talk to her, just chill, okay?”

You turned towards Bryce and gave his request a thought. You decided to hear him out, whatever he wanted to say. You stood up but Clay pulled you back. You assured him by saying “It is okay Clay. I’ll be fine. What can he possibly do in a room full of people? I will be back, okay?”

Clay nodded in apprehension, and you followed Bryce to a corner of the room. You crossed your arms around your chest and asked, “What is it, Bryce?”

“Look Y/N I wanted to thank you for not taking any serious steps against me. I could have lost my scholarship and my chance to go to school and I want to apologize for whatever I did, I am sorry.”

“Bryce, everybody deserves to go to college, and you do too. No matter how you are everybody deserves a chance, so I gave it to you, and it is not a big deal.”

“Yeah, and I am grateful for that. I didn’t realize what I was doing. I was insecure and acted like a dick…” you cut him off and said in agreement “Well that is true.”

Before Bryce could say something, he was cut off by Clay “Everything okay babe?”

“Yeah, he was just saying something. Everything is fine.”

“Clay let me talk to her, please?” requested Bryce, and Clay started walking away with a frown but this time you pulled his hand and said “No Bryce Clay is not going anywhere. He is my boyfriend whatever you wanna say, you can say in front of him” Clay’s eyes gleamed hearing those words.

Clay stood by your side holding your hand “Y/N I was just saying that I am sorry. For everything.”

“Okay.” You replied.

“Okay? You are not gonna forgive me?” he asked.

“Well, you asked me to hear you out, so I did. I gave you a second chance Bryce, but I cannot forgive you, not just yet. I would like you to live with that guilt, if any.”

Bryce took a step towards you, but he was blocked by Clay in the way. Clay stood between the two of you facing Bryce and his hand stopped Bryce from moving further. Half of your body hid behind Clay.

“You heard her, now just leave her alone.” You never saw Clay so protective, and you loved the way he demanded Bryce leave.

You both went back to where the whole gang was and got to know that they soon are going to announce the Prom King and Queen.

“Who’d, you think it’s gonna be?” you asked Jessica with curiosity.

“Who knows? It is always up to the football team” she said pointing toward Zach and the other guys on the football team.

They called Jessica to announce the Prom King and Queen as she was the class president. Jessica walked right into the middle of the room and took the envelope where the names were mentioned.

She read and every soul in the room was looking at her with suspicion, she built up the suspense and finally said “I can never be happier to announce these two names as Prom King and Queen. Are you all ready to know?”

“Yes!” Everybody yelled in excitement.

“Y/N and Clay what the hell are you doing there? Come here because the Prom Queen is Y/N Y/L/N, and the Prom King is Clay Jensen. Come and collect your tiaras.”

Clay and you saw each other in disbelief as the unexpected had happened. You thought that Charlie and Alex were going to be prom kings but here you were receiving the title of Prom Queen. Jessica put the crown over Clay’s head, and you bowed to let Jessica put the tiara. When Jessica did her part, you looked at the audience and made eye contact with Zach as he raised his glass to you both. “Thank you” you mouthed to him.

“This one’s for two of the most important people in my life” announced Tony while playing ‘Perfect’ by Ed Sheeran.

He knew how much you loved the song, and he played the song at the right moment.

“May I have this dance?” Clay’s question caught your attention and your eyes started shining.

Clay offered his hand, and you instantly took his hand. Clay kissed the back of your hand like a gentleman. You bowed and then held each other in a dancing position.

Clay’s hand slid down to your waist holding you close, and your hands rested on his shoulders. Gazing into each other’s eyes you both started dancing while your legs moved in perfect sync you teased Clay “Who knew this nerd could dance?”

“Well as you say, I am full of surprises.”

You felt ecstatic and calm dancing with Clay like you had nothing to worry about. The lyrics ‘I found a girl, beautiful and sweet. Oh, I never knew you were the someone waiting for me…’ echoed in the background.

You looked at Clay and said, “Clay Jensen, I think I am in love with you.”

“Did you just use both my names in a single sentence?” he teased.

“Come on Clay, you’re ruining the moment.”

Clay chuckled and replied, “Sorry, I know I am in love with you Y/N Y/L/N.”

“And I am in love with you Clay Jensen.”

 ‘I don’t deserve this…’

‘You look perfect tonight…’

Clay swirled you around and your body collided as he held you tight like he was never letting you go.

“Kiss, Kiss, Kiss” the crowd started shouting in unison.

You looked at Clay and said, “Seems like it’s time for some PDA Jensen.”

Clay smiled and crashed his lips onto yours, the kiss was desperate yet gentle. After you both had your moment, the crowd joined the dance floor, and you danced in Clay’s arms for the rest of the night.

---

Clay abided by your father’s rule of getting you back to your place by eleven. As you both were not party people at all you decided to ditch the after-party. You both sat down on the couch in your bedroom and helped yourself to some hot chocolate.

The first thing you did after reaching your home was to get out of that dress and realize how good it feels to finally be able to breathe again. You lay your head on Clay’s chest and he put his arm around you as you both sipped your hot chocolate.

“Clay?” you called him out.

“Yeah?”

“I got a mail today, I got into Princeton.”

Clay removed his hand from your shoulder and sat up straight.

“Wow, that’s… great. But you are not going right?” asked Clay in apprehension.

“Clay… Princeton has been my dream college since I was a little kid. Of course, I want to go.”

“You’ll go all the way across the country? What about…us? We all know long distance never works” said Clay standing up.

You tried to convince him “Clay come on, it’s my college we are talking about.”

“So, all that ‘I love you shit was fake huh? You were playing with me this whole time, right?!” He sounded furious.

He started walking out of the room in a rage, but you tried to stop him “Clay please stay. Talk to me.”

Clay shed a tear and whimpered “I am too tired to fight right now Y/N. I should probably leave.”

He left and slammed your bedroom door. Tears started running down your eyes. You were asking questions yourself; did you just ruin a perfect relationship? Did you just hurt the most wonderful boy you have ever met? The hurt caused was not intentional, but you still felt guilty, you ruined your perfect night with the boy you love. Maybe Clay was right, maybe you were graduating single from high school.

Shower your love by liking and commenting on the post. Refrain from copying, plagiarism, or posting on any other platform.

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P.S.: I also upload on Wattpad @immafreakingmoonstone, feel free to check out my account :)

[angelicalgraphics]

‧₊˚ ☁️ NEW POST ࿐ ♡ jessica davis from ‘13 reasons why’ like or reblog ﹕─ 𓈒 ♡̷̷̷ if you save, give proper credits 🪽🪞🤍

[courtillyy]

moodboard: bi greyaro ambonec jessica davis

[jesstinsource]

jessica and justin in the same shots

[kuro-ttsuki]

On My Own | 13 Reasons Why

The murder

You weren't the same after what happened, I mean who could have been? Zach thought for a while he killed Bryce but he was just a part of it, the reaction to Dominos falling row by row. No one apart from Alex and Jessica knew you were there when it happened, you wanted it to be that way.

Why? Because you tried to save him, you didn't just stand there like Jessica when Bryce was pushed in the water, you tried to save him. Jessica tried to hold you back when it happened but you pushed her off and jumped in the water.

You remember the water being so cold it felt like you, yourself was dead. You would've been if you continued to try and save him that night but it was impossible, his body weight was half the size of yours, he was weak, scared, in pain and so were you; scared. He was already dead when you were trying to swim up to the surface with him but you held hope. Hope that if you can make up to the surface, you can save him but again. It was already too late, his dead weight was practically pulling you down with him till you had no choice but to let go, watching as his body sank down.

You walked home that night, you couldn't bare being in the car with his killers. As much you hated Bryce, with how much pain he caused you; the secrets, the rape, the manipulation. Everything he did to you, you should've wanted him dead more than anyone. Maybe at first but now? You wished you could've taken that thought back. He didn't deserve to die like that, and you definitely didn't deserve the trauma his death brought you.

After hearing Ani blame the murder on your ex-boyfriend Monty and his death in prison, you snapped. Liquor and drugs became your best friend, at first it was weed and Hennessy then weed got replaced with shrooms, then Molly and acid and soon it was meth, and any pill or alcohol you could get your hands on. You would even bring them to school, drinking and swallowing or injecting between classes to get by.

As you were spiraling down to a dark path, so was Clay and Zach but never Alex and Jessica. You wondered why what happened didn't affect the actual guilty but instead the accessories to murder. But then again, you stopped caring.

After Clay and Justin busted you over your drug use, you were on 24/7 watch, in fact the whole group had to watch you. Jessica and Ani would make excuses to sleep over at your house; Tyler, Clay and Justin would walk you to your classes and Tony and Zach would take turns being with you after school. That part backfired though. Soon Tony ended up getting busy with his fighting, leaving you and Zach alone all the time.

You two ended up finding comfort in each other, you two were both broken beyond repair so you two became each other's bad influence. Zach would keep secrets about your continuancely drug use and you would keep drinking with him. Drowning y'all's sorrows with any alcohol imagine and sooner rather than later, your two bad habits became intoxicated hookups.

It became a daily occurrence that you ended up finding yourself into being sexually connected with Zach more than the drugs. He was your drug but you weren't his. During the time that you were getting better, he was fucking some other Bimbo from school.

You were hurt by this, yes. But were you really that surprised that it'll happen? No. Once again you were on your own. You began using again, this time you were skipping school.

Everytime Clay went looking for you, you were at every party imaginable rather it be highschool parties at other schools, or frat parties at colleges, you were there. Always high, always shit faced, always in danger. Rather it was you being a danger to yourself or to someone else or they were a danger to you. You were just fucked up you didn't care anymore.

It was like you drowned that night with Bryce. Maybe you should have.

[ellopott-pillanatok]

[13-reasons-ideas]

Can’t Go Back Part 24

A/N: Guess who’s back! Thank you for sticking with me. It’s been a rough several months and I think things are finally getting to a point where I can focus on my hobbies again. As always, feedback is appreciated and Character Q&As are open. Much Love -Em

I had finished the last book on my To Read shelf by mid-May. Hopping off my bed, I went over to my bookshelf. There was only one shelf of space left. The stack to shelve had gotten a tad out of hand. Sighing to myself, I sat down to start reorganizing. I pulled the books from H to Z down to fit the new additions to my collection in. My dad poked his head in when the stack fell over.

“Everything okay in here?” I was surrounded by books. Dad tried not to laugh as he took the scene in. Grabbing books, I turned back to the shelf.

“Perfect. Totally meant to sit in a sea of books this afternoon.”

“Sure. You have fun with that. I have to head into the office for a while. Tell your mother I probably won’t be home for dinner.”

“Will do.” I nodded, not turning my attention back to him.

Monty texted me shortly after I had finished the M’s. What are you up to today?

Organizing my bookshelf. I finished my TBR so now they go in the permanent collection.

Only my girlfriend would make a permanent book collection and a separate section for books that aren’t done.

Hey! Lots of people do this.

Yes honey.

What are you up to today?

Trying to study for my last History test. It’s very boring.

I’m sure it is. If you’re free Saturday, how about a get out of studying free card?

Oh? What did you have in mind Doll? I rolled my eyes and grinned. Of course he thought I meant something dirty.

Cool your jets Monty. I was going to see if you wanted to go to the bookstore with me?

I can make that happen. What time?

I think Clay and I are getting lunch to go over our study guide for the Math final. I could do like 1?

Sounds good. Do you want me to meet you at the bookstore?

Sure. I go to the B&N at the Everglade.

It’s a date.

I smiled and went back to my books.

When it was done, I snapped a picture and sent it to Justin. I finished my TBR! You know what that means?

Oh no. More books?

More books!

Do I have to come with you?

No. The parents gave me a limit of 10 books this time.

Only 10?

I have points saved up. And 10 is a perfectly reasonable amount of new books.

For you? Yes. For normal people? No.

Oh shhh, or I’ll make you come with me.

Okay, okay. It’s reasonable lol. I texted Monty a picture of my bookshelf too. He responded with a laughing emoji.

Teachers were beginning to wrap up final units and hand out study guides for finals. Justin was still mad about summer school so he kept up his not giving a shit attitude. I rolled my eyes whenever he sighed or complained about finals. And I stopped offering to help him. If he wanted to do more work in summer school, that was fine by me. It gave me more time to spend with Monty.

On Saturday, I met Clay at Rosie’s and we both got milkshakes. I wasn’t very hungry, and I didn’t want burger breath later. “So Clay, how’s Hannah doing?”

“I don’t know. We have hung out a few times, and I see her at work, but I don’t think we have hung out hung out.”

“You still haven’t asked her out?”

“I mean, we went to Jeff’s place not together, but we were both there, and I feel like maybe we connected?”

“Connected?”

“Well, we were doing… stuff… and we talked.” My eyes widened.

“Clay Jensen did you do drugs in Jeff’s basement?”

“Maybe?” I was stunned.

“Well, I’ll be damned. Clay Jensen, having fun. I never thought I’d see the day.”

“Ha ha.” He joked.

“I’m kidding! But seriously. Take the risk Clay.”

“I’ll think about it. Can we look at this study guide now?” I sighed and pulled it out of my bag. We both shuddered. This is not going to be a pretty exam.

By the time Clay and I called it an afternoon, it was 12:30. That gave me just enough time to get to the city. We packed our notes and headed outside. “Man, I really need a car.” Clay sighed, unlocking his bike.

“Your parents said no?”

“I have a bike.” He waved towards the bike.

“That you do. I would offer you a ride, but I’m headed into the city for the afternoon.”

“No worries, Addy.” He smiled. We waved goodbye and I watched as he biked down the street. I started my car and texted Monty. Leaving Rosie’s now. Might be a little late. Drive safe.

Sounds good, drive safe Doll.

I stopped at Starbucks when I got to the mall and got an iced coffee to sip while I browse and a coffee for Montgomery. He was waiting outside Barnes & Noble for me. “Hey handsome. Fancy seeing you here.” I winked as I walked up to him.

“Hey gorgeous. What can I say, thought it would be a good way to find a girl. You know what they say about the readers.”

“I have a feeling I do.” I laughed and handed him his coffee. “Something to do with being high strung, overachievers with daddy issues?”

“Somethin’ like that.” Monty took my hand and let me lead him into the bookstore. I decided I would keep my ten-book limit to myself. I knew how many points I had, and I still had birthday money left from last year.

He chuckled as I practically dragged him towards the YA section. I didn’t stop to look at the romance displays or the cookbooks or the journals. I was on a mission. There were books to buy. I sipped my coffee as I browsed. As usual, I made my way up and down the aisles quickly once to see if anything immediately caught my eye. A couple of books did, so I grabbed them to look over after I was done my power walk. “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen you move that fast.”

“Ass.” I laughed as I read over the synopsizes of the two books. Neither of them was my cup of tea in the end, so I decided to put them back. I could feel Montgomery watching me as I looked at the shelves. “What?” I asked as I pulled a book down and skimmed the back.

“Nothin’. You’re just cute is all.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. And those shorts are very nice.” I blushed and smiled softly.

“Thanks.” I handed him the book.

“Oh, I see. You needed someone to carry the books.”

“Well, who else would I have asked, when I have my strong, athletic boyfriend to follow me around the store?” He only laughed in response. I grabbed a few more books as I sipped at my coffee. Once in a while, I would notice him watching me and turn to smile at him.

There were six books in Monty’s hands before he finished his coffee. “I’m going to throw this out. Try to leave some books for the next person, okay Bookworm?”

“I’ll try. No promises though.” I mused. By the time he came back, I had three more books. I looked up when I heard him laugh. I grinned at him and held out the books. He took them, tucked them under his arm, and stepped towards me. My brow furrowed and he reached to tuck my hair behind my ear, trailing his hand down to cup the back of my neck, and pull me towards him to kiss me. I kissed him back softly. It was nice to be able to kiss in public. I liked our little bubble. It felt like we were the only two people in the world. He pulled away first.

We continued to peruse the store for a while and stole kisses and glances along the way. Monty slid his hand in my back pocket as we walked. I grabbed another couple of books and sighed. “What’s up?”

“I guess that’s enough books for a little while.”

“For a little while? Addison. There’s like,” he paused to count, “sixteen books here.”

“Yeah. And that isn’t even all of what is on my TBR still. And it’s buy one get one half off all books.” I shrugged.

“Jesus. Crazy woman.” He muttered softly and kissed the side of my head. I sighed and turned to head for the till. After discounts, points, and birthday money, my total was twenty-five dollars.

“Now to figure out how to sneak the extra six books into the house.” I muttered as we left.

“The extra what whats?”

“Uh… nothing.” I smiled sheepishly. He shook his head playfully. “Oh, hey. Pretzels. Split one?”

“Nice change of subject. Sure. Pretzel sounds good.” He rubbed my hand as he held it. This is nice.

In late June, just as finals week was hitting its peak, tragedy struck our little group of jocks. The boys were at Bryce’s trying to blow off some steam. I was trying to be nice to him and make an effort for Justin, so I tagged along. The way his family approached and flaunted their money always took me by surprise. I wasn’t oblivious. I knew my family had more money than most. More than I liked to consider or admit. But it was never flashed around the way it was with the Walkers. I came from old money on my dad’s side, like his mom. But unlike him, I wasn’t exposed to it on a daily basis. The concept of a twice a week maid was enough to widen my eyes. The only time my family had a maid come was when Gran was coming to stay with us, or we were hosting Christmas back when all my grandparents lived state-side, so a very deep clean was needed. The fact that they had a chef come in once a week to meal prep for them was… almost incomprehensible. The only time I met a chef was when I found a hair in my food when my family went out one night.

I had been to his house before of course. I was friends with Justin. We shared custody of him most weeks. Even still, I found myself hanging back and watching the boys socialize. Or I was trying to at least. Bryce thrusting a bottle of water in my hand startled me. I jumped slightly. “Thanks.” I muttered.

“Don’t mention it.” He chuckled. He settled himself next to me and leaned back against the counter.

“Hi.”

“Hi. You know that they will talk to you, right? They know you.”

“I know.”

“Okay. I’ll talk to you then.” Great. Just what I want.

“Sure Bryce.”

“How are finals treating you?”

“I cried before my honours English final yesterday.”

“I almost forgot about my math final.”

“So, we are basically in the same boat.”

“Basically. You had bio and history today?”

“Yeah.”

“How were they?”

“I think I did fairly okay. Can you imagine what my mum would do if I bombed the history final?” He stared off into space with me and shivered.

“I would say something nice about you at your funeral.”

“Thanks Walker. Killing me does seem like a lot of hassle for that though. Like it seems like it would just inconvenience them. Maybe locked in my room to study until I’m forty?”

“True. I would text you news updates. Keep you updated in all things Bryce and the boys.”

“Prefect. Make isolation at least a little bit bearable.” He was actually kind of nice sometimes. Maybe. If I squinted.

“Yeah. My dad would have freaked if I missed my math final.”

“How could you take over the family business if you fail tenth grade math Bryce?”

“No idea. Not like he doesn’t pay someone to do all that math for him. Speaking of, he wanted me to ask you if your dad is taking on any new clients now that tax season is winding down?”

“I don’t know. I don’t think he is, but I can get him to email your dad.” I don’t think he’s going to take your dad on.

“I’ll let him know.”

“Where are you off to this summer?”

“I think we are summering in Fiji?”

“Because California isn’t summer-y enough?”

“Mom thinks the sun feels different. More sunny. I tan better in tropical environments.”

“Sure, you do.”

“What are your family’s plans?”

“We have our annual family trip to Boston at the end of July into the first week of August. Dad pushed his vacation time this year.”

“Doesn’t he own the company?”

“Yeah. But his associate wanted to take vacation in mid-July. She’s taking her kids to Disney World.”

“Again, doesn’t he own the company?”

“Again, yes. Why?”

“Shouldn’t he get first pick?”

“Well, our vacation basically costs us airfare, food, and spending money. Hers and everyone else’s costs a lot more. And requires more planning. So, he lets them have first pick and takes whatever’s left for the most part. Because of that, people are more willing to pick fairly.”

“Interesting.”

“Are you two going to come outside or not?” Justin called from the back yard. Bryce and I looked up and found the house empty. All the boys had moved to the back. We shrugged and joined them. I needed to pass the sniff test so I didn’t dare go in the pool house. Anders and Dylan were in the pool house enjoying Bryce’s stash. It was already nearing eighty degrees in the daytime. We were in for a hot summer. Justin pulled off his shirt, dropped his pants, and jumped in the pool. Shaking my head, I followed Bryce outside.

I sat on the edge of the pool and dipped my feet in the water. Monty was trying to be discreet and swim backwards towards me. He stopped just shy of me and shared a look with Zach. I pretended not to notice. It looked like I was busy watching Justin goof off with Bryce and Garrison. I was watching my boyfriend out of the corner of my eye though. I felt a wave close to my foot. “Montgomery. If you touch my foot, I’m not responsible for what happens to your face.” His hand stopped and his eyes widened. Justin laughed and called from across the pool.

“She isn’t wrong dude. She kicked me in the face when I was trying to bug her one time.”

“I wasn’t going to….” Monty trailed off.

“Sure, you weren’t.” I shook my head and moved to stand up. I pulled my tank top over my head. The shorts I was wearing were fine to go in the water.

Seeing as we had to keep up appearances, I couldn’t very well ask Monty to tighten the tie on my bikini top. That would be too much. The boys would question that. Joking around and talking to each other in a group was okay. Touching was not. “Hey Justin, do you mind?” I gestured to my back, not looking at the pool.

“He’s a little busy.” Bryce said. I could hear splashing behind me.

“Zach?”

“Sure.” He climbed out of the pool and untied the bottom strings. He pulled them tighter in a knot and doubled the bow. “Good?”

“Yeah.” I turned around. “Thanks.” Bryce whistled. Gross.

“Why are you keeping her all to yourself again?” He asked Justin. I flipped him off. Why am I being nice to you again?

“I’m not. It’s Addison. Even if I was, I don’t share Bryce.” He seemed to shut the conversation down. Only I could pick up on the stern undertone in his voice. Just as quickly as it came, it was gone, and they were back to goofing off again.

I slipped in the pool and noticing Justin was distracted, I swam over to him and jumped on his back. I may have accidentally splashed Monty in my jumping. I snuck a peek at him and he was rolling his eyes and laughing. “Chicken?” Justin asked. His hands went to my thighs unconsciously.

“No. You dropped me last time. Though it would be entertaining trying to watch the rest of you lift each other.”

“We’re strong.” The boys around me protested. They all made a show of flexing.

“Yes, yes. You’re all strong and hot. With superior athletic abilities. Go you.” I laughed.

“Ha! I told you she thinks I’m hot.” Bryce pointed at Justin.

“It doesn’t count if you’re objectively attractive Walker. I also think the blond guy from the Percy Jackson movie is hot. Because he is objectively attractive.”

“Objectively attractive?”

“You’re lucky you’re rich.” I muttered. Justin choked. “You’re a very pretty man Bryce Walker.”

“Do we get called pretty too Addison?” Monty asked.

“If you don’t call me by my full name again then sure Monty. You are also pretty. Foley, I swear if you drop me, you’re sleeping on the floor tonight.” His hand tightened around my thigh.

The group of us hung out for a while. At some point Scott joined us. Even though we weren’t friends per say, he was still nice to me when I was around. He swam over to my corner of the pool. “I’m supposed to ask you if you think I’m pretty?”

“Scott. If you don’t know you’re pretty, I don’t know what to say to you.”

“Alright then. Why was I supposed to ask?”

“I acknowledged Bryce is objectively attractive and the children felt left out.”

“I see. Why are you hiding in a corner?”

“Hiding from Justin. He’s trying to get me to play chicken. But I don’t feel like getting dropped again.”

“And why does he think you’d get to play with anyone else?”

“I think the attempt would be very entertaining actually.” There was a ringing over by the table.

“Someone’s phone is ringing.” I called. The ringing stopped and started again immediately. Zach looked up. It was his phone.

“It’s probably his mommy calling to tell him he has to come home before it gets dark.” Bryce teased. The boys laughed. I even chuckled a little to myself. Oh, how bad I would feel about that chuckle in a few hours. Zach splashed him. By the time the phone began its second round of ringing again, Zach was out of the pool and grabbing it. He was smiling when he answered it.

“Hey Mom. I’m com-.” It was quiet. “Yeah, I’ll be right home.” He hung up and quickly pulled on his pants, over his wet swim trucks. He threw on his shirt and practically sprinted back in the house. He didn’t say a word to any of us as he left.

“What’s going on with him?” Bryce said. We all stared after him.

A few hours after I got home, I got a text from Bryce. Justin got the same text. Zach’s dad died. Justin and I sat and looked at each other at the table, shocked. We sat there for a solid ten minutes, trying to absorb the information we had been given. I was sure our friends were in the same position. How did you respond to something like that? None of us had ever lost a parent. Sure, I had lost a couple of grandparents. I probably wasn’t the only one. But they’re sort of expected to die. They’re old. They’ve lived. Our parents weren’t old. Not old enough to die yet anyway. I picked my phone back up and texted Zach the only thing I could think to say. He would hear the words a lot in the next few months. I am so sorry. I knew he wouldn’t answer.

Zach wasn’t at school for the rest of the week. Not that he should have been. He had been excused from all of his other exams. Because of course he should have been. I didn’t see him until I was walking home from a date with Monty over the weekend. He was just… walking around town. He didn’t see me at first. When he noticed me standing up the street, he waved a little. I waved back and slowly walked over to him. Even though Zach Dempsey and I weren’t really friends, we were friendly. That’s why it didn’t feel weird when the only thing my brain said to do, was hug him. He didn’t cry. He didn’t say anything. He just hugged me back. We didn’t talk about that random, silent hug on the street again. Not for a long time at least. We simply nodded as we parted ways. He walked one way and I walked the other.

July changed a lot of things. Bryce left town with his family a few days after Zach’s dad’s funeral. Seth was back in town too. That meant Justin spent most of the first couple of weeks of July at my house. He was right. My parents were not happy about him doing summer school. As his not-mom my mum had a strict ‘no fun until homework is done and checked’ rule. At first, I spent my time with Monty during school hours. We weren’t really sure what the summer meant for our relationship. Those first few dates, we mostly talked about that.

“Well, I don’t want to not see you.” Monty said, between kisses in the backseat of my car. We had parked at a secluded clearing overlooking the river.

“I don’t want to not see you either. It’s going to be hard though.”

“Don’t talk about hard right now Doll. Please.” I pulled away and looked at him wide-eyed. “You don’t strike me as a public sex kind of girl. And I don’t want to get a public indecency charge.”

“Yeah. I’m not.” I sat up. “Justin being at my place complicates things.”

“Oh, I know.” He ground out as he adjusted his jeans. I could tell my cheeks were flushed.

“We knew we couldn’t see each other every day.”

“But it’s not easy not seeing you.”

“I know it’s not.”

“Why does this have to be so hard?” He sat back.

“I don’t know.” Neither of us were ready nor willing to have the ‘tell other people’ talk. Even though it had been almost a year. And probably needed to happen.

“Seeing each other while school is in, isn’t such a bad thing, is it?”

“No.”

“And I do have other friends. I could say I’m going to the city with Alex or something. Give us some more time?”

“That’s true.”

I sighed and ran my hand through my hair. “I could take you to the bookstore.” He blinked at me. “What?”

“The bookstore?”

“It’s air conditioned.” I shrugged and climbed into his lap. His hands instinctively found their way to my hips.

“You just need someone to carry your books again.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” I smirked.

There was something different about Justin since he started summer school. I couldn’t put my finger on it. He was… distracted. I noticed he spent more time on his phone after homework than paying attention to what we were doing. Which was fine when it was show re-runs or my mom’s pick for movie night. But when you’re trying to play Ticket to Ride with a guy, it’s much easier when they are paying attention. “Hey. Earth to Justin. Hello?”

“Huh?” He looked up from his phone.

“It’s been your turn for the past five minutes.”

“Shit, sorry.” He looked at his cards and the map. Picking up a red and a pink from the pile, he settled back in his chair. Interesting. I frowned at the board, trying to figure out what he was doing. I came back with nothing. His phone buzzed again. I glanced at it. So did he. Then my phone buzzed. He glanced at it. So, did I. It was like we were waiting to see who would grab their phone first. After a few beats, his hand went to his phone. He smirked a little and put it down. I didn’t check mine.

I came home from a date with Monty a little late on Thursday. It was nearing five when I walked in the door, after I fixed my hair. I dropped my purse and stopped dead in my tracks. Justin had company. Company in the form of Jessica Davis. Who was currently sitting in his lap. On my couch. Making out with him. On my couch. They had their hands up each other’s shirts. On my couch. I cleared my throat. Jessica pulled away and turned towards me. “Oh, hey Addy.” She greeted, like this was normal.

“Hey Addy. You’re… just getting home?” His speech was slowed. Are you shitting me?

“Yeah. What’s going on?”

“Your parents said I could have a friend over after class.”

“Okay.” I blinked. She was still perched in his lap. I glanced at the clock. “I suggest you fix your shirts because they should be home soon. And I don’t think they want to see, uh, this.” I motioned in their general direction. Jessica laughed and climbed off Justin.

“Oh, don’t be such a priss, Addison.”

“I’m not being a priss. I just wasn’t expecting to come home to people making out on my couch.” She rolled her eyes. “Great to see you too. Hey, Justin. Can I steal you for a sec?” I waved upstairs. “There’s snacks in the cupboard, Jess.”

Justin followed me upstairs, trying not to giggle at, assumingly, the fact that he didn’t get caught by my parents. I shut the door when we got to my room. “What the fuck Justin?”

“What?” He shrugged.

“What do you mean what?”

“What?”

“Making out with a girl on our couch?” He was trying to avoid eye contact. My parents are going to kill him.

“No one was home. It’s not a big deal.”

“How long has this been going on?”

“I don’t know, a couple weeks?” I blinked at him. He was still trying to look away from me. I grabbed his face and made him look at me.

“Are you fucking high right now?”

“No? What? Why would you ask that?” His eyes were bloodshot. He was acting very much like Justin when Justin has been indulging in Bryce’s stash.

“Don’t lie to me Justin Foley. You know my parent’s rules. Do you want them to freak out?”

“Oh, come on Addison. It was a little weed. It’s not that big of a deal.” I sighed heavily.

“You know what, whatever. You obviously don’t care. So, I suggest you tell your girlfriend to leave or figure out a way to sober up before they get home. And if that fails, tell her to leave, and come hide in here until you’re sober enough to face them.” I grabbed a book off my shelf and went back downstairs. I nodded at Jessica, who had made herself some crackers and dip. Sitting at the table, I texted Monty.

Justin and Jessica? Did you know about this? He responded a couple of minutes later.

No? Actually?

Yeah. They were making out on my couch when I got home. And to make things even more awkward and complicated, they’re both high.

I mean, to be fair, weed isn’t really that bad.

Yeah. I know. But that’s not the point. My parents are going to freak. Now is really not the time to be pissing them off.

Oh crap. You guys leave for Boston soon, don’t you?

Next week. And if Justin can’t keep his shit together… I left the unspoken implication hang in cyberspace. Are you really just going to ignore the fact that they were on the couch?

I was hoping to just ignore that fact.

Our make out spots are becoming fewer and further between.

We could just stay in your bed, Doll.

But the couch has the TV. So we can not watch a movie without worrying about my laptop falling.

“Who you texting so much?” Jessica asked, trying to peer at my phone.

“Friend from Boston.” I said, locking my phone.

“Oh, friend from Boston, you say? Is he cute?”

“I guess? His girlfriend probably thinks so.”

“Oh. Not a secret long distance lover then?”

“No. And we grew up together. It would be weird.” I slipped my phone in my pocket and grabbed some cereal. We both looked up when my parents got home. I took that as my cue to go get Justin. I practically kicked him downstairs so he could go entertain his girlfriend with my parents and I could have some time to process how I missed it. Probably the same way he has missed me having a boyfriend for… almost a year.

The day before we left for Boston, Justin and I were running around like mad men. I had plans with Monty and Justin had plans with Jessica tonight, so I didn’t want to be too long packing. Unfortunately, neither of us could find anything we wanted to bring. It was going to be nice so I wanted to bring some dresses. We had a few things planned, but like with our other trips, there would be plenty of time to lounge around the house.

“Have you seen my pink and green dress?”

“The one with the stripes? No. Have you seen my blue shirt?”

“I think mum put it in the wash.”

“Okay.” Justin went down the hall to the bathroom. “Has anyone seen my shampoo?” He called.

“It’s in here.” My dad called from their room. I was busy ripping apart my closet. I groaned in frustration.

“You know, it’s just Boston. We go every year.”

“I know Justin. I just like to be prepared for every eventuality.”

“Yeah. Wait… are you trying to impress Adrian?” Justin laughed. I turned and he was leaning against the doorframe.

“No. Absolutely not. Besides, he has a girlfriend.” A girlfriend I happen to like.

“If you say so.” He smirked. I rolled my eyes and flipped him off as he went back to packing his bag. I gave up on my closet and decided to tackle our toiletries. I wasn’t too concerned with travel sizes because it was all going in my checked luggage.

“Decide what book you’re taking with you Addy?”

“Don’t you mean books, plural? It is a 6-hour flight after all.” He laughed.

“Okay, okay. Books?”

“I’m happy you asked.” I grinned as I pulled out the Barnes & Noble bag from under my bed. His jaw dropped. I shrugged.

“Your parents are going to freak.”

“They know I went book shopping.”

After a very long day of packing, Justin left to go meet Jessica. I texted Monty to let him know I would be leaving in about fifteen minutes. “I’m going to hang out with Alex and Clay for a bit.” I told my parents.

“Just remember we leave early tomorrow for the airport Addison.” My dad said, not looking up from his list. My mom was emptying the fridge.

“I will.”

When I got to the cliffside where we agreed to meet, Monty was waiting for me. I couldn’t help myself. I ran and held onto him like it was the last time I would ever see him. “You’re only leaving for two weeks Addison.” He grunted at the impact.

“I’m going to miss you.”

“I’ll miss you too.” He kissed the top of my head. We stood like that for a few more minutes before finally separating. I took his hand and led him up the trail. It was good for both of us to be walking the trails. He was starting summer training with the boys while we were gone, and I was going to be sitting for around 8 hours straight tomorrow. Provided our flight wasn’t delayed, of course. It was just starting to get dark, and I stopped along the way to take in the town’s skyline in the evening dusk. Monty rested his chin on top of my head, and I sighed, leaning back into him. It was so peaceful. I looked up and him and noticed a small bruise forming on his jaw. Not wanting to start a fight right before I left for two weeks, I pretended I hadn’t seen it. I smiled sadly to myself still. I wish he would just talk to me about it.

After a few hours, wandering around and soaking in the last time we would have for a couple of weeks, which feels like an eternity when you’re 16, we knew it was time to say goodbye. When we got to the parking lot, he made me turn around at his Jeep. I furrowed my brow. Before I could ask, he twirled his finger in the air. I clamped my mouth closed and turned. He rummaged around for a minute. “What are you doing?”

“You’ll see. Just wait a minute.” I huffed. He chuckled. “Ah.” He muttered. He tapped me on the shoulder. I turned. He held out a small Barnes and Noble bag. I was taken aback. I wasn’t expecting anything. I pointed at the bag and then at me.

“F-for me?”

“It’s not much so don’t start.” He smiled, shyly.

“Okay.” I took the bag.

“I can’t wrap stuff worth shit, so the bag is as good as you’re going to get.” I laughed and shrugged. It was a fair enough explanation. I opened the bag and pulled out a spiralbound notebook. The cover was pink with the titles of all the classics on it. I smiled. “You won’t be here for your birthday, and I know your notebook is getting full so….” Monty trailed off.

“Thank you. This is really sweet.” I flipped it open and gasped. On the first page, he had drawn a book like on the cover, and titled it The Next Classic and written Hawthorne at the bottom where the author’s last name sometimes appears.

“Happy birthday, Addison.”

“Oh.” I smiled. My eyes had started to tear up. This was the sweetest gift anyone had ever given me. I closed the gap between us and kissed him. He pulled me closer to him and I deepened the kiss just a little. Not too much, just enough to make him remember me while I was gone.I had finished the last book on my To Read shelf by mid-May. Hopping off my bed, I went over to my bookshelf. There was only one shelf of space left. The stack to shelve had gotten a tad out of hand. Sighing to myself, I sat down to start reorganizing. I pulled the books from H to Z down to fit the new additions to my collection in. My dad poked his head in when the stack fell over. “Everything okay in here?” I was surrounded by books. Dad tried not to laugh as he took the scene in. Grabbing books, I turned back to the shelf.“Perfect. Totally meant to sit in a sea of books this afternoon.” “Sure. You have fun with that. I have to head into the office for a while. Tell your mother I probably won’t be home for dinner.” “Will do.” I nodded, not turning my attention back to him. Monty texted me shortly after I had finished the M’s. What are you up to today? Organizing my bookshelf. I finished my TBR so now they go in the permanent collection. Only my girlfriend would make a permanent book collection and a separate section for books that aren’t done. Hey! Lots of people do this. Yes honey. What are you up to today? Trying to study for my last History test. It’s very boring. I’m sure it is. If you’re free Saturday, how about a get out of studying free card? Oh? What did you have in mind Doll? I rolled my eyes and grinned. Of course he thought I meant something dirty. Cool your jets Monty. I was going to see if you wanted to go to the bookstore with me?I can make that happen. What time? I think Clay and I are getting lunch to go over our study guide for the Math final. I could do like 1?Sounds good. Do you want me to meet you at the bookstore? Sure. I go to the B&N at the Everglade. It’s a date. I smiled and went back to my books. When it was done, I snapped a picture and sent it to Justin. I finished my TBR! You know what that means?Oh no. More books? More books! Do I have to come with you?No. The parents gave me a limit of 10 books this time. Only 10?I have points saved up. And 10 is a perfectly reasonable amount of new books. For you? Yes. For normal people? No. Oh shhh, or I’ll make you come with me. Okay, okay. It’s reasonable lol. I texted Monty a picture of my bookshelf too. He responded with a laughing emoji. Teachers were beginning to wrap up final units and hand out study guides for finals. Justin was still mad about summer school so he kept up his not giving a shit attitude. I rolled my eyes whenever he sighed or complained about finals. And I stopped offering to help him. If he wanted to do more work in summer school, that was fine by me. It gave me more time to spend with Monty. On Saturday, I met Clay at Rosie’s and we both got milkshakes. I wasn’t very hungry, and I didn’t want burger breath later. “So Clay, how’s Hannah doing?” “I don’t know. We have hung out a few times, and I see her at work, but I don’t think we have hung out hung out.” “You still haven’t asked her out?” “I mean, we went to Jeff’s place not together, but we were both there, and I feel like maybe we connected?” “Connected?” “Well, we were doing… stuff… and we talked.” My eyes widened. “Clay Jensen did you do drugs in Jeff’s basement?” “Maybe?” I was stunned. “Well, I’ll be damned. Clay Jensen, having fun. I never thought I’d see the day.”“Ha ha.” He joked. “I’m kidding! But seriously. Take the risk Clay.” “I’ll think about it. Can we look at this study guide now?” I sighed and pulled it out of my bag. We both shuddered. This is not going to be a pretty exam.By the time Clay and I called it an afternoon, it was 12:30. That gave me just enough time to get to the city. We packed our notes and headed outside. “Man, I really need a car.” Clay sighed, unlocking his bike. “Your parents said no?” “I have a bike.” He waved towards the bike. “That you do. I would offer you a ride, but I’m headed into the city for the afternoon.” “No worries, Addy.” He smiled. We waved goodbye and I watched as he biked down the street. I started my car and texted Monty. Leaving Rosie’s now. Might be a little late. Drive safe. Sounds good, drive safe Doll. I stopped at Starbucks when I got to the mall and got an iced coffee to sip while I browse and a coffee for Montgomery. He was waiting outside Barnes & Noble for me. “Hey handsome. Fancy seeing you here.” I winked as I walked up to him.“Hey gorgeous. What can I say, thought it would be a good way to find a girl. You know what they say about the readers.” “I have a feeling I do.” I laughed and handed him his coffee. “Something to do with being high strung, overachievers with daddy issues?” “Somethin’ like that.” Monty took my hand and let me lead him into the bookstore. I decided I would keep my ten-book limit to myself. I knew how many points I had, and I still had birthday money left from last year. He chuckled as I practically dragged him towards the YA section. I didn’t stop to look at the romance displays or the cookbooks or the journals. I was on a mission. There were books to buy. I sipped my coffee as I browsed. As usual, I made my way up and down the aisles quickly once to see if anything immediately caught my eye. A couple of books did, so I grabbed them to look over after I was done my power walk. “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen you move that fast.” “Ass.” I laughed as I read over the synopsizes of the two books. Neither of them was my cup of tea in the end, so I decided to put them back. I could feel Montgomery watching me as I looked at the shelves. “What?” I asked as I pulled a book down and skimmed the back. “Nothin’. You’re just cute is all.” “Oh?” “Yeah. And those shorts are very nice.” I blushed and smiled softly. “Thanks.” I handed him the book. “Oh, I see. You needed someone to carry the books.”“Well, who else would I have asked, when I have my strong, athletic boyfriend to follow me around the store?” He only laughed in response. I grabbed a few more books as I sipped at my coffee. Once in a while, I would notice him watching me and turn to smile at him. There were six books in Monty’s hands before he finished his coffee. “I’m going to throw this out. Try to leave some books for the next person, okay Bookworm?” “I’ll try. No promises though.” I mused. By the time he came back, I had three more books. I looked up when I heard him laugh. I grinned at him and held out the books. He took them, tucked them under his arm, and stepped towards me. My brow furrowed and he reached to tuck my hair behind my ear, trailing his hand down to cup the back of my neck, and pull me towards him to kiss me. I kissed him back softly. It was nice to be able to kiss in public. I liked our little bubble. It felt like we were the only two people in the world. He pulled away first. We continued to peruse the store for a while and stole kisses and glances along the way. Monty slid his hand in my back pocket as we walked. I grabbed another couple of books and sighed. “What’s up?” “I guess that’s enough books for a little while.” “For a little while? Addison. There’s like,” he paused to count, “sixteen books here.” “Yeah. And that isn’t even all of what is on my TBR still. And it’s buy one get one half off all books.” I shrugged. “Jesus. Crazy woman.” He muttered softly and kissed the side of my head. I sighed and turned to head for the till. After discounts, points, and birthday money, my total was twenty-five dollars. “Now to figure out how to sneak the extra six books into the house.” I muttered as we left. “The extra what whats?” “Uh… nothing.” I smiled sheepishly. He shook his head playfully. “Oh, hey. Pretzels. Split one?” “Nice change of subject. Sure. Pretzel sounds good.” He rubbed my hand as he held it. This is nice. In late June, just as finals week was hitting its peak, tragedy struck our little group of jocks. The boys were at Bryce’s trying to blow off some steam. I was trying to be nice to him and make an effort for Justin, so I tagged along. The way his family approached and flaunted their money always took me by surprise. I wasn’t oblivious. I knew my family had more money than most. More than I liked to consider or admit. But it was never flashed around the way it was with the Walkers. I came from old money on my dad’s side, like his mom. But unlike him, I wasn’t exposed to it on a daily basis. The concept of a twice a week maid was enough to widen my eyes. The only time my family had a maid come was when Gran was coming to stay with us, or we were hosting Christmas back when all my grandparents lived state-side, so a very deep clean was needed. The fact that they had a chef come in once a week to meal prep for them was… almost incomprehensible. The only time I met a chef was when I found a hair in my food when my family went out one night. I had been to his house before of course. I was friends with Justin. We shared custody of him most weeks. Even still, I found myself hanging back and watching the boys socialize. Or I was trying to at least. Bryce thrusting a bottle of water in my hand startled me. I jumped slightly. “Thanks.” I muttered. “Don’t mention it.” He chuckled. He settled himself next to me and leaned back against the counter. “Hi.” “Hi. You know that they will talk to you, right? They know you.” “I know.” “Okay. I’ll talk to you then.” Great. Just what I want. “Sure Bryce.” “How are finals treating you?” “I cried before my honours English final yesterday.” “I almost forgot about my math final.” “So, we are basically in the same boat.” “Basically. You had bio and history today?” “Yeah.” “How were they?” “I think I did fairly okay. Can you imagine what my mum would do if I bombed the history final?” He stared off into space with me and shivered. “I would say something nice about you at your funeral.” “Thanks Walker. Killing me does seem like a lot of hassle for that though. Like it seems like it would just inconvenience them. Maybe locked in my room to study until I’m forty?” “True. I would text you news updates. Keep you updated in all things Bryce and the boys.” “Prefect. Make isolation at least a little bit bearable.” He was actually kind of nice sometimes. Maybe. If I squinted.“Yeah. My dad would have freaked if I missed my math final.” “How could you take over the family business if you fail tenth grade math Bryce?” “No idea. Not like he doesn’t pay someone to do all that math for him. Speaking of, he wanted me to ask you if your dad is taking on any new clients now that tax season is winding down?” “I don’t know. I don’t think he is, but I can get him to email your dad.” I don’t think he’s going to take your dad on. “I’ll let him know.” “Where are you off to this summer?” “I think we are summering in Fiji?” “Because California isn’t summer-y enough?” “Mom thinks the sun feels different. More sunny. I tan better in tropical environments.” “Sure, you do.”“What are your family’s plans?” “We have our annual family trip to Boston at the end of July into the first week of August. Dad pushed his vacation time this year.” “Doesn’t he own the company?” “Yeah. But his associate wanted to take vacation in mid-July. She’s taking her kids to Disney World.” “Again, doesn’t he own the company?”“Again, yes. Why?” “Shouldn’t he get first pick?” “Well, our vacation basically costs us airfare, food, and spending money. Hers and everyone else’s costs a lot more. And requires more planning. So, he lets them have first pick and takes whatever’s left for the most part. Because of that, people are more willing to pick fairly.” “Interesting.”“Are you two going to come outside or not?” Justin called from the back yard. Bryce and I looked up and found the house empty. All the boys had moved to the back. We shrugged and joined them. I needed to pass the sniff test so I didn’t dare go in the pool house. Anders and Dylan were in the pool house enjoying Bryce’s stash. It was already nearing eighty degrees in the daytime. We were in for a hot summer. Justin pulled off his shirt, dropped his pants, and jumped in the pool. Shaking my head, I followed Bryce outside. I sat on the edge of the pool and dipped my feet in the water. Monty was trying to be discreet and swim backwards towards me. He stopped just shy of me and shared a look with Zach. I pretended not to notice. It looked like I was busy watching Justin goof off with Bryce and Garrison. I was watching my boyfriend out of the corner of my eye though. I felt a wave close to my foot. “Montgomery. If you touch my foot, I’m not responsible for what happens to your face.” His hand stopped and his eyes widened. Justin laughed and called from across the pool. “She isn’t wrong dude. She kicked me in the face when I was trying to bug her one time.” “I wasn’t going to….” Monty trailed off. “Sure, you weren’t.” I shook my head and moved to stand up. I pulled my tank top over my head. The shorts I was wearing were fine to go in the water. Seeing as we had to keep up appearances, I couldn’t very well ask Monty to tighten the tie on my bikini top. That would be too much. The boys would question that. Joking around and talking to each other in a group was okay. Touching was not. “Hey Justin, do you mind?” I gestured to my back, not looking at the pool. “He’s a little busy.” Bryce said. I could hear splashing behind me. “Zach?” “Sure.” He climbed out of the pool and untied the bottom strings. He pulled them tighter in a knot and doubled the bow. “Good?” “Yeah.” I turned around. “Thanks.” Bryce whistled. Gross.“Why are you keeping her all to yourself again?” He asked Justin. I flipped him off. Why am I being nice to you again? “I’m not. It’s Addison. Even if I was, I don’t share Bryce.” He seemed to shut the conversation down. Only I could pick up on the stern undertone in his voice. Just as quickly as it came, it was gone, and they were back to goofing off again. I slipped in the pool and noticing Justin was distracted, I swam over to him and jumped on his back. I may have accidentally splashed Monty in my jumping. I snuck a peek at him and he was rolling his eyes and laughing. “Chicken?” Justin asked. His hands went to my thighs unconsciously. “No. You dropped me last time. Though it would be entertaining trying to watch the rest of you lift each other.” “We’re strong.” The boys around me protested. They all made a show of flexing. “Yes, yes. You’re all strong and hot. With superior athletic abilities. Go you.” I laughed. “Ha! I told you she thinks I’m hot.” Bryce pointed at Justin. “It doesn’t count if you’re objectively attractive Walker. I also think the blond guy from the Percy Jackson movie is hot. Because he is objectively attractive.” “Objectively attractive?” “You’re lucky you’re rich.” I muttered. Justin choked. “You’re a very pretty man Bryce Walker.” “Do we get called pretty too Addison?” Monty asked.“If you don’t call me by my full name again then sure Monty. You are also pretty. Foley, I swear if you drop me, you’re sleeping on the floor tonight.” His hand tightened around my thigh. The group of us hung out for a while. At some point Scott joined us. Even though we weren’t friends per say, he was still nice to me when I was around. He swam over to my corner of the pool. “I’m supposed to ask you if you think I’m pretty?” “Scott. If you don’t know you’re pretty, I don’t know what to say to you.” “Alright then. Why was I supposed to ask?” “I acknowledged Bryce is objectively attractive and the children felt left out.” “I see. Why are you hiding in a corner?” “Hiding from Justin. He’s trying to get me to play chicken. But I don’t feel like getting dropped again.” “And why does he think you’d get to play with anyone else?” “I think the attempt would be very entertaining actually.” There was a ringing over by the table. “Someone’s phone is ringing.” I called. The ringing stopped and started again immediately. Zach looked up. It was his phone. “It’s probably his mommy calling to tell him he has to come home before it gets dark.” Bryce teased. The boys laughed. I even chuckled a little to myself. Oh, how bad I would feel about that chuckle in a few hours. Zach splashed him. By the time the phone began its second round of ringing again, Zach was out of the pool and grabbing it. He was smiling when he answered it. “Hey Mom. I’m com-.” It was quiet. “Yeah, I’ll be right home.” He hung up and quickly pulled on his pants, over his wet swim trucks. He threw on his shirt and practically sprinted back in the house. He didn’t say a word to any of us as he left.“What’s going on with him?” Bryce said. We all stared after him. A few hours after I got home, I got a text from Bryce. Justin got the same text. Zach’s dad died. Justin and I sat and looked at each other at the table, shocked. We sat there for a solid ten minutes, trying to absorb the information we had been given. I was sure our friends were in the same position. How did you respond to something like that? None of us had ever lost a parent. Sure, I had lost a couple of grandparents. I probably wasn’t the only one. But they’re sort of expected to die. They’re old. They’ve lived. Our parents weren’t old. Not old enough to die yet anyway. I picked my phone back up and texted Zach the only thing I could think to say. He would hear the words a lot in the next few months. I am so sorry. I knew he wouldn’t answer. Zach wasn’t at school for the rest of the week. Not that he should have been. He had been excused from all of his other exams. Because of course he should have been. I didn’t see him until I was walking home from a date with Monty over the weekend. He was just… walking around town. He didn’t see me at first. When he noticed me standing up the street, he waved a little. I waved back and slowly walked over to him. Even though Zach Dempsey and I weren’t really friends, we were friendly. That’s why it didn’t feel weird when the only thing my brain said to do, was hug him. He didn’t cry. He didn’t say anything. He just hugged me back. We didn’t talk about that random, silent hug on the street again. Not for a long time at least. We simply nodded as we parted ways. He walked one way and I walked the other. July changed a lot of things. Bryce left town with his family a few days after Zach’s dad’s funeral. Seth was back in town too. That meant Justin spent most of the first couple of weeks of July at my house. He was right. My parents were not happy about him doing summer school. As his not-mom my mum had a strict ‘no fun until homework is done and checked’ rule. At first, I spent my time with Monty during school hours. We weren’t really sure what the summer meant for our relationship. Those first few dates, we mostly talked about that. “Well, I don’t want to not see you.” Monty said, between kisses in the backseat of my car. We had parked at a secluded clearing overlooking the river. “I don’t want to not see you either. It’s going to be hard though.” “Don’t talk about hard right now Doll. Please.” I pulled away and looked at him wide-eyed. “You don’t strike me as a public sex kind of girl. And I don’t want to get a public indecency charge.” “Yeah. I’m not.” I sat up. “Justin being at my place complicates things.” “Oh, I know.” He ground out as he adjusted his jeans. I could tell my cheeks were flushed. “We knew we couldn’t see each other every day.” “But it’s not easy not seeing you.” “I know it’s not.” “Why does this have to be so hard?” He sat back. “I don’t know.” Neither of us were ready nor willing to have the ‘tell other people’ talk. Even though it had been almost a year. And probably needed to happen. “Seeing each other while school is in, isn’t such a bad thing, is it?” “No.” “And I do have other friends. I could say I’m going to the city with Alex or something. Give us some more time?” “That’s true.” I sighed and ran my hand through my hair. “I could take you to the bookstore.” He blinked at me. “What?” “The bookstore?” “It’s air conditioned.” I shrugged and climbed into his lap. His hands instinctively found their way to my hips. “You just need someone to carry your books again.” “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” I smirked. There was something different about Justin since he started summer school. I couldn’t put my finger on it. He was… distracted. I noticed he spent more time on his phone after homework than paying attention to what we were doing. Which was fine when it was show re-runs or my mom’s pick for movie night. But when you’re trying to play Ticket to Ride with a guy, it’s much easier when they are paying attention. “Hey. Earth to Justin. Hello?”“Huh?” He looked up from his phone. “It’s been your turn for the past five minutes.” “Shit, sorry.” He looked at his cards and the map. Picking up a red and a pink from the pile, he settled back in his chair. Interesting. I frowned at the board, trying to figure out what he was doing. I came back with nothing. His phone buzzed again. I glanced at it. So did he. Then my phone buzzed. He glanced at it. So, did I. It was like we were waiting to see who would grab their phone first. After a few beats, his hand went to his phone. He smirked a little and put it down. I didn’t check mine. I came home from a date with Monty a little late on Thursday. It was nearing five when I walked in the door, after I fixed my hair. I dropped my purse and stopped dead in my tracks. Justin had company. Company in the form of Jessica Davis. Who was currently sitting in his lap. On my couch. Making out with him. On my couch. They had their hands up each other’s shirts. On my couch. I cleared my throat. Jessica pulled away and turned towards me. “Oh, hey Addy.” She greeted, like this was normal. “Hey Addy. You’re… just getting home?” His speech was slowed. Are you shitting me? “Yeah. What’s going on?” “Your parents said I could have a friend over after class.” “Okay.” I blinked. She was still perched in his lap. I glanced at the clock. “I suggest you fix your shirts because they should be home soon. And I don’t think they want to see, uh, this.” I motioned in their general direction. Jessica laughed and climbed off Justin. “Oh, don’t be such a priss, Addison.” “I’m not being a priss. I just wasn’t expecting to come home to people making out on my couch.” She rolled her eyes. “Great to see you too. Hey, Justin. Can I steal you for a sec?” I waved upstairs. “There’s snacks in the cupboard, Jess.” Justin followed me upstairs, trying not to giggle at, assumingly, the fact that he didn’t get caught by my parents. I shut the door when we got to my room. “What the fuck Justin?” “What?” He shrugged. “What do you mean what?” “What?” “Making out with a girl on our couch?” He was trying to avoid eye contact. My parents are going to kill him. “No one was home. It’s not a big deal.” “How long has this been going on?” “I don’t know, a couple weeks?” I blinked at him. He was still trying to look away from me. I grabbed his face and made him look at me. “Are you fucking high right now?” “No? What? Why would you ask that?” His eyes were bloodshot. He was acting very much like Justin when Justin has been indulging in Bryce’s stash. “Don’t lie to me Justin Foley. You know my parent’s rules. Do you want them to freak out?” “Oh, come on Addison. It was a little weed. It’s not that big of a deal.” I sighed heavily. “You know what, whatever. You obviously don’t care. So, I suggest you tell your girlfriend to leave or figure out a way to sober up before they get home. And if that fails, tell her to leave, and come hide in here until you’re sober enough to face them.” I grabbed a book off my shelf and went back downstairs. I nodded at Jessica, who had made herself some crackers and dip. Sitting at the table, I texted Monty. Justin and Jessica? Did you know about this? He responded a couple of minutes later. No? Actually?Yeah. They were making out on my couch when I got home. And to make things even more awkward and complicated, they’re both high. I mean, to be fair, weed isn’t really that bad. Yeah. I know. But that’s not the point. My parents are going to freak. Now is really not the time to be pissing them off. Oh crap. You guys leave for Boston soon, don’t you? Next week. And if Justin can’t keep his shit together… I left the unspoken implication hang in cyberspace. Are you really just going to ignore the fact that they were on the couch?I was hoping to just ignore that fact. Our make out spots are becoming fewer and further between. We could just stay in your bed, Doll. But the couch has the TV. So we can not watch a movie without worrying about my laptop falling. “Who you texting so much?” Jessica asked, trying to peer at my phone. “Friend from Boston.” I said, locking my phone. “Oh, friend from Boston, you say? Is he cute?”“I guess? His girlfriend probably thinks so.” “Oh. Not a secret long distance lover then?”“No. And we grew up together. It would be weird.” I slipped my phone in my pocket and grabbed some cereal. We both looked up when my parents got home. I took that as my cue to go get Justin. I practically kicked him downstairs so he could go entertain his girlfriend with my parents and I could have some time to process how I missed it. Probably the same way he has missed me having a boyfriend for… almost a year. The day before we left for Boston, Justin and I were running around like mad men. I had plans with Monty and Justin had plans with Jessica tonight, so I didn’t want to be too long packing. Unfortunately, neither of us could find anything we wanted to bring. It was going to be nice so I wanted to bring some dresses. We had a few things planned, but like with our other trips, there would be plenty of time to lounge around the house. “Have you seen my pink and green dress?” “The one with the stripes? No. Have you seen my blue shirt?”“I think mum put it in the wash.” “Okay.” Justin went down the hall to the bathroom. “Has anyone seen my shampoo?” He called. “It’s in here.” My dad called from their room. I was busy ripping apart my closet. I groaned in frustration. “You know, it’s just Boston. We go every year.” “I know Justin. I just like to be prepared for every eventuality.” “Yeah. Wait… are you trying to impress Adrian?” Justin laughed. I turned and he was leaning against the doorframe. “No. Absolutely not. Besides, he has a girlfriend.” A girlfriend I happen to like. “If you say so.” He smirked. I rolled my eyes and flipped him off as he went back to packing his bag. I gave up on my closet and decided to tackle our toiletries. I wasn’t too concerned with travel sizes because it was all going in my checked luggage. “Decide what book you’re taking with you Addy?” “Don’t you mean books, plural? It is a 6-hour flight after all.” He laughed. “Okay, okay. Books?” “I’m happy you asked.” I grinned as I pulled out the Barnes & Noble bag from under my bed. His jaw dropped. I shrugged. “Your parents are going to freak.” “They know I went book shopping.” After a very long day of packing, Justin left to go meet Jessica. I texted Monty to let him know I would be leaving in about fifteen minutes. “I’m going to hang out with Alex and Clay for a bit.” I told my parents. “Just remember we leave early tomorrow for the airport Addison.” My dad said, not looking up from his list. My mom was emptying the fridge. “I will.” When I got to the cliffside where we agreed to meet, Monty was waiting for me. I couldn’t help myself. I ran and held onto him like it was the last time I would ever see him. “You’re only leaving for two weeks Addison.” He grunted at the impact. “I’m going to miss you.” “I’ll miss you too.” He kissed the top of my head. We stood like that for a few more minutes before finally separating. I took his hand and led him up the trail. It was good for both of us to be walking the trails. He was starting summer training with the boys while we were gone, and I was going to be sitting for around 8 hours straight tomorrow. Provided our flight wasn’t delayed, of course. It was just starting to get dark, and I stopped along the way to take in the town’s skyline in the evening dusk. Monty rested his chin on top of my head, and I sighed, leaning back into him. It was so peaceful. I looked up and him and noticed a small bruise forming on his jaw. Not wanting to start a fight right before I left for two weeks, I pretended I hadn’t seen it. I smiled sadly to myself still. I wish he would just talk to me about it. After a few hours, wandering around and soaking in the last time we would have for a couple of weeks, which feels like an eternity when you’re 16, we knew it was time to say goodbye. When we got to the parking lot, he made me turn around at his Jeep. I furrowed my brow. Before I could ask, he twirled his finger in the air. I clamped my mouth closed and turned. He rummaged around for a minute. “What are you doing?” “You’ll see. Just wait a minute.” I huffed. He chuckled. “Ah.” He muttered. He tapped me on the shoulder. I turned. He held out a small Barnes and Noble bag. I was taken aback. I wasn’t expecting anything. I pointed at the bag and then at me. “F-for me?” “It’s not much so don’t start.” He smiled, shyly. “Okay.” I took the bag. “I can’t wrap stuff worth shit, so the bag is as good as you’re going to get.” I laughed and shrugged. It was a fair enough explanation. I opened the bag and pulled out a spiralbound notebook. The cover was pink with the titles of all the classics on it. I smiled. “You won’t be here for your birthday, and I know your notebook is getting full so….” Monty trailed off. “Thank you. This is really sweet.” I flipped it open and gasped. On the first page, he had drawn a book like on the cover, and titled it The Next Classic and written Hawthorne at the bottom where the author’s last name sometimes appears. “Happy birthday, Addison.” “Oh.” I smiled. My eyes had started to tear up. This was the sweetest gift anyone had ever given me. I closed the gap between us and kissed him. He pulled me closer to him and I deepened the kiss just a little. Not too much, just enough to make him remember me while I was gone. 

[crystel48]

Another installment of recs. 13 Reasons Why edition. Links included. It's been a while. I know.

Zach and Alex

Okay, so. I did not personally love this show. It was okay. I did, however, fall in love with this ship. In my humble opinion, there are not nearly enough fanfics for them, but here are a few

1. Deserved by TheLovliestCrime on Ao3. Okay. This fic is my favorite. It is so good. This fic starts with Charlie and Alex together, but Alex realizes he is in love with Zack. But there is NO Charlie bashing. Zach is kinda dumb in this for a while, but it gets better. Rated Explicit and has over 80,000 words.

2. Damaged by thatcrazymj on ao3

This fic is about 23,000 words. It is rated T. This fic starts with Alex and Jess together, but it is going badly. Basically, Zach comforts him in the aftermath, and they discover something more. Highly recommend. Kinda angsty. Be warned.

3. We Don't Need to Whisper by just_chiara on Ao3.

This is technically the fourth fic in a series, but it is the main one that the series resolves around. They are already together when the fix starts, and they are just figuring out their relationship. Rated Teen. About 85,000 words.

4. Baby Steps by Alex_Standalone on A03

So this one is kinda angsty, too. Zach is super depressed in this one. Eventually, he and Alex get together, and Alex helps him because he knows what he is going through. Great writing. Rated Mature, about 31,000 words.

5. Mouth to mouth, heart to heart by ZachandAlextime on A03

This takes place during the camping trip after Alex realizes what Winston's motives were. Zach has a bi crisis, as per usual. Explicit, about 42,000 words.

This next recommendation does not include Zach and Alex. It is a series about Justin and Clay being brothers where the dreaded 4th season does not exist. Read it. Please. It is so good.

6. A Maze of Moments by RealDaveofDaves on A03

This is an AMAZING fic series. It starts right when Justin and Clay have to start getting used to being brothers. The series as a whole has about 280,000 words. They are all rated G or T even though it is fairly mature content based around the content of the show. I really loved this series, and you won't be disappointed with the ending.

Happy reading. Give me feedback if you're willing. Love y'all.